Tag: Leonard Williams

Leonard Williams contract details for 3-year deal with Seahawks

Leonard Williams contract details for 3-year deal with Seahawks

I say with confidence the one free agent decision the Seattle Seahawks have made that every 12th Man, Woman and Child can agree upon is this: it is a great thing to be able to re-sign Leonard Williams.

Sending over a second round pick for an impending free agent in the trade last season made this extension a top priority. Not only was Williams outstanding on the field, but making sure they did not waste such a valuable pick for merely a half-season rental needed to get done.

Fortunately, general manager John Schneider made this a priority and the extension materialized. Williams was inked to a three-year, $64.5 million deal with the Seahawks. Now we know how Williams’ payday breaks down:

The Seahawks run defense was once again atrocious. The only way they could have begun to solidify was keeping a dominant player like Williams in the fold. Now that this task has been completed, the work continues for Schneider and Co. as the initial waves of free agency begin to dwindle.

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Seahawks make the correct move in bringing back Leonard Williams

Seahawks make the correct move in bringing back Leonard Williams

On October 31st, 2023 the Seattle Seahawks gave the 12th Man quite the treat when they traded for defensive lineman Leonard Williams. The move was not without risk, however. In order to obtain Williams, they needed to fork over a second round pick to the New York Giants. A hefty price to pay for an impending free agent on the last year of his contract.

While there was some trepidation at the cost, many 12’s expected general manager John Schneider wouldn’t have traded for Williams without a reasonable expectation he could get a new deal done. The faith was rewarded, as the Seahawks have agreed to terms with Williams.

When it was announced defensive lineman Christian Wilkins would be going to the Las Vegas Raiders on a four-year, $110 million dollar contract – with $84.75 million guaranteed – the asking price for Williams became set. Now, it seems this has proven correctly, as Williams will be making roughly $21.5 million per year, similar to Wilkins.

This is quite the lucrative contract for an interior defensive lineman. But as any Seattle fan will quickly tell you, there may not be such a thing as overpaying on a quality player like Williams – especially at a position of considerable need for the Seahawks.

The challenge begins for new head coach Mike Macdonald and Co. for building a lasting contender in the Pacific Northwest. Keeping Leonard Williams in the fold is a great building block to begin with.

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Leonard Williams staying with Seahawks, agrees to 3-year deal

The Seahawks have agreed to terms with defensive lineman Leonard Williams, according to Ian Rapoport at NFL Network.

The Seahawks have agreed to terms with defensive lineman Leonard Williams, according to Ian Rapoport at NFL Network.

Tom Pelissero followed up moments later with details that it’s a three-year deal worth a total of $64.5 million.

Originally a first-round pick by the Jets back in 2015, Williams came over to the Seahawks in a mid season trade with the Giants. In 10 games in a Seattle uniform he was their most-effective defender, totaling four sacks, 11 quarterback hits and 15 pressures despite frequently seeing double teams.

As expected, re-signing Williams wasn’t cheap and while the trade to get him may not have been a brilliant idea, allowing him to leave would have made the Seahawks’ defense worse where it matters most. By keeping Williams in the fold, they have a solid centerpiece to build their defense around in the absence of Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks.

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Christian Wilkins agrees to terms with Raiders, what it could mean for Leonard Williams

Christian Wilkins agrees to terms w/ Raiders, what it could mean for Leonard Williams

One of the first major dominoes in free agency has just fallen. One of the better defensive linemen available, Christian Wilkins of the Miami Dolphins appears to be headed west. Wilkins and the Raiders have agreed to terms on a monster contract that will make him quite a wealthy man.

Wilkins will join a defensive line with Maxx Crosby, in an effort to slow down division rival quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert.

Breaking down the contract, this appears to be roughly $21 million a year. Of course, the first thought Seattle Seahawks fans should have is how this impacts impending free agent Leonard Williams.

The Seahawks made a splash trade in the middle of the season to acquire Williams from the New York Giants at the deadline, and it cost them a pretty penny. To obtain Williams’ services, Seattle had to fork over a second round pick. Such a hefty price for a soon-to-be free agent had many folks expecting the Seahawks to ink Williams to an extension eventually.

Now we know the likely price range Williams will be asking for in contract negotiations with either Seattle or a different suiter.

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Seahawks expected to ramp up efforts to re-sign Leonard Williams

General manager John Schneider insists the team would love to have Williams back, but time is running out.

If the Seahawks are going to re-sign defensive lineman Leonard Williams to a long-term deal, today would be a good day to get it done. Tomorrow marks the unofficial start of free agency with the league’s legal tampering period beginning – when free agents are able to start negotiating with other teams.

General manager John Schneider insists the team would love to have Williams back, but time is running out. According to Jeremy Fowler at ESPN, the Seahawks are expected to ramp things up today.

“And the Seahawks are expected to ramp up their efforts to re-sign Williams, who played well coming off last year’s trade. Getting something done before Monday would be optimal for Seattle.”

While they can technically still re-sign Williams any time, facts are that there are a bunch of teams who have more cap space than the Seahawks and who have a greater need for interior defensive line help. Odds are Williams can make more money if he hits the open market than by staying, hence the impetus to get a deal done today.

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Top 5 defensive tackle free agent options for Raiders

Top 5 defensive tackle free agent options for Raiders

It’s past time for the Raiders to make a splash at defensive tackle. They have the edge rushers and some solid overall play on the defense. If they can add an anchor in the middle of that defensive line, they could be a real force on the defensive side of the ball.

There are a lot of good option that could be hitting the market next week. Here are the top give they should consider.

 

 

 

 

 

Projecting Seahawks starters for Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season

Geno Smith will be starting Week 1. Let’s see if we can predict who else will be joining him.

Geno Smith is still the guy for the Seahawks at the quarterback position – at least for the 2024 season. After restructuring his contract and likely shopping him around at the Scouting Combine, the team has reportedly told Smith that he will be on the roster this year and won’t be traded.

That news won’t stop Seattle from targeting a quarterback in the draft, but we now know that Smith will be starting Week 1 over any rookie they bring in or Drew Lock. Let’s see if we can predict who else will be joining him in the Seahawks’ starting lineup come September.

In this scenario, we are expecting a cautious approach from Seattle’s front office in free agency. For starters, our projection has Leonard Williams moving on to another team after he hits the market when the new league year begins. To replace him, the team uses one of their early draft picks on an enormous interior defensive line prospect from Texas.

We’re also assuming that the Seahawks will pass on Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and focus on building up their offensive line in the draft – towards that end we have two new rookies projected to start at the guard positions. Let’s get to the full list.

Seahawks updated roster and depth chart going into 2024 free agency

Seahawks restructure Geno Smith’s contract, save $4.8 million in cap room

General manager John Schneider got the job done by converting the $9.6 million roster bonus that was due on March 17 into a signing bonus.

According to a report by Field Yates at ESPN, the Seattle Seahawks have restructured the contract of starting quarterback Geno Smith. The move saves the team $4.8 million in salary cap space for the 2024 NFL season.

General manager John Schneider got the job done by converting the $9.6 million roster bonus that was due on March 17 into a signing bonus.

It’s an interesting move by the Seahawks, the kind that can often be a prelude to a larger transaction. Maybe this is a maneuver the team needed to make in order to fit a new contract for defensive lineman Leonard Williams, who will become a free agent in three weeks.

The real question here is how it impacts Geno Smith and whether the move makes him more tradeable or if it confirms that he won’t be going anywhere, at least this year.

The answer remains to be seen. For now, the move does one thing – the Seahawks are now pretty-much cap compliant. According to Jason Fitzgerald at Over the Cap, the restructure gets them about even with the cap limit, which needed to happen by March 13.

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Predicting where 10 Seahawks players will land in free agency

Here are our predictions for 10 Seahawks free agents and where they will end up signing.

Free agency is almost upon us. In less than three weeks the NFL’s legal tamperiod period window will open and teams can begin negotiating with agents who represent free agents. The Seahawks have several key players who are about to hit the market, including seven on Pro Football Focus’ list of the top 150 this year. Odds are they won’t be able to keep all of them and there are a few who they should allow to leave.

Let’s see if we can guess where they’re headed. Here are our predictions for 10 Seahawks free agents and where they will end up signing.

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Seahawks pick Texas DT Byron Murphy in this NFL.com mock draft

That’s just what they did in a new mock draft from Daniel Jeremiah at NFL.com, who has Seattle taking Texas DT Byron Murphy II.

Seahawks fans have to prepare for the possibility that the team will not be able to re-sign Leonard Williams if he hits the open market. If that does end up happening, then interior defensive line suddenly rises to the team’s greatest roster need going into the 2024 NFL draft.

While there are a lot of other paths they could take – including trading down to get their second-round pick back – selecting the best interior pass rusher on the board would be a good way to use their No. 16 overall pick. That’s just what they did in a new mock draft from Daniel Jeremiah at NFL.com, who has Seattle taking Texas DT Byron Murphy II.

“Leonard Williams is a pending free agent, but even if the Seahawks work out a deal with him, Murphy would be a nice complement on the interior defensive line.”

Murphy (6-foot-1, 297 pounds) is a popular mock pick for the Seahawks at this spot, as is Alabama edge Dallas Turner. In 34 games with the Longhorns, Murphy has totaled eight sacks and 15 tackles for a loss.

Given the similarity of their frames, there will be the inevitably silly Aaron Donald comps. Fans should know focus on the fact that Murphy is already a solid lineman on his own without having those kinds of expectactions unfairly heaped on his shoulders.

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