With talks between the Seahawks and Russell Wilson on the fourth-year quarterback’s second contract at a standstill, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times looks at why that’s the case.
One factor, Condotta points out, for the offseason impasse is how Seattle operates offensively. In Wilson, who rated as Pro Football Focus’ 13th-best quarterback last season, leading a run-heavy attack with a perennially menacing defense acting as a safety net, the team may view a player whose potential for growth beyond the lofty heights to which he’s already ascended is limited based on what he’s asked to do.
“That could be a consideration from Seattle, at least currently, as to why they have not offered a top-of-the-market contract just yet,’’ OverTheCap’s Jason Fitzgerald told Condotta. “When you look at some of the contracts they have offered — whether it was Marshawn Lynch, Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman, Percy Harvin and so on — cost was never an issue.
“ … The fact that they are not doing the same for Wilson could indicate that they feel what you see now is his ceiling and there is no more upside.”
As Condotta points out, Wilson’s 96.8 career passer rating ranks behind only Aaron Rodgers among active quarterbacks, so the Seahawks’ reported four-year, $87MM offer won’t cut it when the Super Bowl-winning signal-caller, due to make the 44th-most money ($1.5MM) among quarterbacks this season, has outperformed his rookie deal to this degree. And the lack of urgency for the 2016 free agent, a label that’s pretty insignificant at this point since Wilson is highly unlikely to have that option any time soon, could work in his favor.
“Whenever you have a good-to-great player, the longer you wait, the more it’s going to cost you,” CBSSports.com’s Joel Corry told Condotta.
Let’s look at some other Sunday news items from the Western NFL locales.
- Mired in a battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphomy, Chiefs Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry “looks really good,” Travis Kelce noted after helping out with one of Berry’s youth camps recently, reports Vahe Gregorian of the Kansas City Star. The sixth-year safety who remains without a return timetable was reportedly fully engaged in the camp’s operation.
- Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post looks at Peyton Manning‘s status entering his age-39 season a tanner, fitter player. The Broncos future Hall of Famer’s legendary work ethic’s seeped into his latest challenge, with Cody Latimer noting how in tune Manning already was with new coach Gary Kubiak‘s playbook when the 2014 second-round pick participated at Manning’s Duke camp. Kubiak’s system, while new to Manning, doesn’t quite have the nuances of his previous setup, possibly accelerating this learning curve.