Teams are settling their franchise tag business on Monday. The Seahawks are the latest team to do so, with Albert Breer of SI.com reporting (via Twitter) the team has made the decision to apply the tag to Frank Clark.
Decisions for Clark’s and DeMarcus Lawrence‘s tags have come within the past hour, and the Texans franchised Jadeveon Clowney earlier today. The Chiefs and Buccaneers are using their tags on Dee Ford and Donovan Smith, respectively. Teams have until 3pm CT Tuesday to use their franchise tags.
Like the other moves, Seattle’s Clark decision was expected. Pete Carroll confirmed at the Combine the 25-year-old defensive end would be a Seahawk in 2019. The sides are already progressing on talks, and this deal may be one that gets done before the July 15 deadline.
The Michael Bennett/Cliff Avril sidekick had consistently shown he had higher-end pass-rushing abilities off the bench, and in his first full season as a starter, Clark broke out for 13 sacks — more than Bennett or Avril recorded in a season during their Seattle stays. Clark has 35 career sacks, combining for 19 between the 2016 and ’17 seasons. Although the Seahawks let numerous Super Bowls-era bastions go last year, Clark appears part of the organization’s long-term plans.
Clark has not resisted the tag and appears likely to sign his tender and attend offseason workouts. Tagging Clark will cost the Seahawks $17.128MM, which will be deducted from the team’s $49.8MM in cap space.