Tag: Seahawks cap space

ESPN: Seahawks should give Uchenna Nwosu contract extension

Preaching to the choir

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Right now the Seahawks only have around $7.15 million in salary cap space remaining for the 2023 season. One way they could free up some money is by giving contract extensions to deserving veterans.

In fact, according to Field Yates at ESPN, the single-best roster move that Seattle can make the rest of this offseason is giving their underrated outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu a contract extension.

“Nwosu was fantastic for the Seahawks in his first season there in 2022, posting career-highs across the board, including 9.5 sacks. With a comparable season this year, Nwosu would be positioned as one of the top free agent pass-rushers next March, making an extension a logical proposition… A side benefit of an extension would be a likely reduced cap charge for 2023, which is helpful for a team that could use a little wiggle room.”

Preaching to the choir, here.

Nwosu has certainly earned the pay-day. He was by far the team’s most-outstanding front-seven defender last season and without him there’s a real possibility this would have been both the worst pass rushing and the weakest run defending unit in the entire league.

For now, Nwosu has a 2023 cap number just over $13 million, the fourth-biggest on the team. However, according to Over the Cap, Seattle can save $5,336,000 with an extension.

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With the contract details for Bobby Wagner’s one-year deal revealed, Seattle is now firmly in the red.

The Seahawks were busy in free agency this year, splurging to fix their defensive front seven by signing two interior defensive linemen and two off-ball linebackers They also added a veteran center and re-signed both 2022 quarterbacks, Geno Smith and Drew Lock.

While that’s a good bit of work for March, the party is now over. With the contract details for Bobby Wagner’s one-year deal revealed, Seattle is now firmly in the red.

According to the latest figures at Over the Cap, Seattle has roughly $4,168,554 available for the 2023 season. However, that number does not count what it will cost to sign their draft class. With 10 total picks this year including two first-rounders, that won’t be cheap.

The Seahawks’ effective cap number is actually -$5,496,786, which is the least space in the entire league.

So, in order to make room for their extra large rookie class they’ll have to either release more players or get creative. So far several vets have already gotten the axe, including Gabe Jackson and Shelby Harris.

They could cut more but there’s not much fat left to trim on this roster. General manager John Schneider may need to tweak some of the larger contracts on the books in order to create room.

The three players who make sense for contract restructures are wide receiver Tyler Lockett and safeties Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs. According to Over the Cap’s projections, Seattle could save another $5,690,000 by restructuring Lockett’s deal, $6,613,333 more by restructuring Adams and $6,162,500 with a restructure for Diggs’ deal.

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How much cap space do the Seahawks have after 1 week of free agency?

So, how much salary cap space do they have left?

The Seahawks threw out their usual script in free agency this year. Instead of waiting several days to sign their usual bargain-bin targets they spent big on Day 1 and have added five new players since the market opened.

First, they splurged to sign former Broncos defensive tackle Dre’Mont Jones, who signed a three-year, $51 million deal. Next, they doubled down on the interior defennsive line, bringing back former Seattle tackle Jarran Reed on a two-year, $10.8 million contract. The team also re-signed backup quarterback Drew Lock and brought in former Lions center Evan Brown, former Steelers linebacker Devin Bush as well as former Giants DB Julian Love.

So, how much salary cap space do they have left?

According to Over the Cap, Seattle currently has $11.9 million in cap room. That ranks No. 15 in the league.

What comes next? Based on what general manager John Schneider said on ESPN radio last week, our best guess is they will continue to add help to the defensive front seven.

Specifically, Schneider says they are in contact with several other free agent defensive linemen. A bunch of interesting names remain on the market, including former Seahawks defensive ends Jadeveon Clowney and Frank Clark as well as Yannick Ngakoue. Inside, there are a lot of intriguing over-30 options, including Calais Campbell and Akiem Hicks.

Linebacker is another market to watch. Even after the unpopular Bush signing they are still in the market for another veteran. Specifically, the latest reporting says they’re still keen on re-signing Bobby Wagner.

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How much salary cap space do the Seahawks have after the Jamal Adams deal?

Seattle also has reason to celebrate.

The Seahawks made Jamal Adams a wealthy man yesterday, signing their star safety to a deal that included $38 million guaranteed. Based on his press conference yesterday, Adams is thrilled with his big payday, even if it’s not quite as much as he was hoping for.

Seattle also has reason to celebrate. In addition to locking in their most-important defensive piece outside of Bobby Wagner, the move created some additional cap space for this coming season. We now have some more details on the Adams contract thanks to Pro Football Talk. The signing saved Seattle $4.86 million in 2020 cap room, bringing their total to around $13 million.

That’s more than enough money to go out and fill one of this team’s roster holes in free agency. Right now, they’re pretty much all on the defensive side of the ball. Former Seahawks K.J. Wright, Quinton Dunbar and Richard Sherman are all worth a look.

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