The Seattle Seahawks and Russell Wilson are not close on a contract extension and the quarterback could push into the season without a new deal and this comes as the team could consider a trade with Michael Bennett or Bruce Irvin before training camp starts and after John Schneider added Frank Clark and Tyler Lockett as notable picks in the NFL draft.
Wilson and his contract are one of the main storylines for the Seahawks coming into the season and they would like to get a deal done soon. According to the Seattle Times, the Seahawks have made an offer of $80 million over four years, while Wilson's camp is looking for a deal around $120 million with more years involved. ESPN 710 in Seattle reports that Wilson and the Seahawks are "10s of millions" apart in talks and that could stretch things out when it comes to an extension.
Earlier in the offseason there were numerous reports about Wilson and the contract talks, with Terry Blount at ESPN writing that a deal was close to being done. Clearly that did not turn out to be true and other reports had the contract being close to fully guaranteed. According to NFL.com reporter Ian Rapoport, the Seahawks are "thinking outside the box" about Wilson's deal and could make it between 60-80 percent guaranteed.
The Seahawks have been very lucky, as Wilson's cap hits have been below or around $1 million over the past few years and they would like to keep that going if they can. Wilson has won a Super Bowl already and has been in the playoffs all three years of his career and now he should end up getting paid like one of the highest paid quarterbacks in the league.
The main issue is likely money, but part of it could also be Wilson's baseball career, as he has said multiple times that one of his dreams is to play major league baseball. Wilson could use that as some leverage against the Seahawks, but they likely don't believe that he would walk away from football for a baseball career. Wilson has said that Rangers GM Jon Daniels has spoken with him about playing for Texas in the future.
The Seahawks did not pick up the fifth year option on Bruce Irvin and that sparked some trade rumors for the linebacker heading into the summer. Reports had the Falcons interested in making a move, as Dan Quinn is now the head coach after being the defensive coordinator in Seattle. Irvin had his best season since his rookie year in 2014, but the team did not pick up his option and his future is up in the air. The team also came up in trade rumors with Bennett, as he reportedly wants a new contract and could hold out for more money during training camp.
The draft brought some attention on the Seahawks and some of it was good, but not all of it. The pick of Clark in the second round has drawn some criticism, as he was involved in an alleged domestic violence incident in the past. The team added Lockett and he is expected to compete to start and could be a top option with Wilson alongside Doug Baldwin.
