Rumor: RW asking to be the highest paid player in history

[Anthony!]

I concur - but we do have to play some hardball. Too much nicey-nicey and he will be getting 26 million per. I love the guy but I think age and injury will slow him down sooner rather than later. I see a 8-9 year career, not 15 plus. He is smart enough then to move on and make 20 million per doing something else - maybe a future team VP like John Elway, or NFL executive.

I don't think it's hardball, as much as Pete and John trying to remain consistent with their stars. Each of the big contract extensions they've given out to guys like Bennett, Avril, Thomas, Kam, Sherm, etc. have been slightly less than probably what those players could have gotten in free agency (like Tate and Maxwell).

Their entire philosophy with player contracts has been "come play for a fantastic organization in a fantastic city with fantastic facilities with fantastic fans where we WILL be competing each and every year for rings.............which means whatever "home town discount" you give us so we can keep our competitive edge will come back to you 3 or 4 times over with endorsements and local opportunities to make up for it.

Sounds like Russell isn't going along with that precedent.

Except for Lynch who they give into every year.

 

[Trenchbroom]

I don't think people understand clearly enough that we've already gotten a massive discount at the QB position for the return we've seen, and it's not Wilson being greedy or selfish if he now wants to be paid like a SB-winning QB. We made out like bandits on Richard Sherman, too, having one of the best CBs in the league (if not the flat-out BEST) on a 5th-round rookie deal for 3 years. When it was time, the Seahawks made him the highest-paid CB in the league. It's Wilson's time now.

Although I would maintain that getting paid "like a SB-winning QB" does not necessarily mean the most expensive contract in the league, it is Wilson's time. Even if he gets paid marginally more than the last "highest" player then I am OK with it (the salary cap will raise and so things will get better for the team over the course of the contract).

But IF the rumors about him wanting to be paid SUBSTANTIALLY more than the last top guy are true...then I have a problem with it. It's short-sighted, greedy and more than a little arrogant.

 

[Pandion Haliaetus]

Yesterday, I admit I let this make me sour.

But after some thought I don't mind if he's the highest paid QB in the NFL.

As long as good chunk of that money (25-40%) is tied into performance based incentives that only pay like an elite QB If he performs like an elite QB with high end production.

If he wants to paid like that without the performance based integrity then my original statement still stands... screw him.

 

[Pandion Haliaetus]

Yesterday, I admit I let this make me sour.

But after some thought I don't mind if he's the highest paid QB in the NFL.

As long as good chunk of that money (25-40%) is tied into performance based incentives that only pay like an elite QB If he performs like an elite QB with high end production.

If he wants to paid like that without the performance based integrity then my original statement still stands... screw him.

 

[Anthony!]

Yesterday, I admit I let this make me sour.

But after some thought I don't mind if he's the highest paid QB in the NFL.

As long as good chunk of that money (25-40%) is tied into performance based incentives that only pay like an elite QB If he performs like an elite QB with high end production.

If he wants to paid like that without the performance based integrity then my original statement still stands... screw him.

Problem with that is if they put those kind of incentives in there, then you can bet there will also be things like he must get 500+ attempts, etc. Without attempts he cannot meat those incentives, and as we know on this team and win this system he will never get the attempts needed to meet the goals you are talking about. FYI he is an Elite QB already he just does it differently then others because of the system he is in.

 

[HommyHawk]

We might have to wait and see what luck gets.

 

[Pandion Haliaetus]

Yesterday, I admit I let this make me sour.

But after some thought I don't mind if he's the highest paid QB in the NFL.

As long as good chunk of that money (25-40%) is tied into performance based incentives that only pay like an elite QB If he performs like an elite QB with high end production.

If he wants to paid like that without the performance based integrity then my original statement still stands... screw him.

Problem with that is if they put those kind of incentives in there, then you can bet there will also be things like he must get 500+ attempts, etc. Without attempts he cannot meat those incentives, and as we know on this team and win this system he will never get the attempts needed to meet the goals you are talking about. FYI he is an Elite QB already he just does it differently then others because of the system he is in.

Wake up, Ashton. He isn't going to take you back.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

As long as good chunk of that money (25-40%) is tied into performance based incentives that only pay like an elite QB If he performs like an elite QB with high end production.

That's the problem though, it's the opposite. The sticking point is not only how much guaranteed cash Russell wants, but total amount over 4 years.

All reports say that we've offered Russell 80M over 4 years, which puts him an entire 20M over what the lesser tier QB's like Kaep and Dalton got, but he seems to want closer to 100M over 4 years. Seems excessive to me, and that's a pretty big gap, so I don't see this getting resolved anytime soon.

 

[kearly]

The tl;dr version: If you're going to pay a QB, more than top QB money, he better be able to not only get volume stats, but put up good efficiency stats much like Manning, Rodgers and co. have been able to do for years. If Wilson is not able to become that guy, then we should move on if he refuses to budge from his current stance, because he will have to become like a Rodgers, or Manning if we ever want to win a superbowl again under Carroll. While I think Wilson can be a decent volume passer I do not ever think he will be a Manning or Rodgers even when you factor in his running.

Of all QBs under the age of 30, Luck and Wilson are the clear #1 and #2. The gap to #3 is enormous. The third best 20-something QB would be Kaep or Newton right now, and as recent drafts have proven, breaking into the NFL at QB didn't suddenly get easier.

If Russell is the 2nd or 3rd best QB in five years, by the end of this upcoming contract, it seems reasonable to pay him like a top 3 QB.

As far as championships go, a difference in pay of a couple million a year isn't going to be the difference in winning a championship. Especially if the cap continues to rise by about $9 million every year. Since 2003 Joe Flacco is the only QB to win it all that isn't at least a decent bet for the HoF, and Joe Flacco was quickly made one of the highest paid QBs after he won.

 

[aawolf]

Those RW bashers seem to be angry/disappointed at the wrong party here. According to an article from Danny O'Neil, the Seahawks haven't even put $100 million on the table. Here is the article:

http://mynorthwest.com/292/2758350/The- ... e-Seahawks

According to O'Neil, the Seahawks are holding firm to Russell Wilson's contract being FOUR years, $80 million ($20 million a year, for just four years). That's just crazy. Consider these deals, cited in the article:
Kaepernick: Six years, $114 million ($19 million a year)
Andy Dalton: Six years, $96 million ($16 million a year)
Aaron Rodgers: Five years, $110 million ($22 million a year)
Ben Roethlisberger: Five years, $99 million ($19.8 million a year)

And, you want to pay RW less years and less total money than any of these QB's listed? When he's been making less money than the kicker for the past three years? When he's been to 2 Superbowls and produced playoff wins in each of his first 3 years (unlike any of the QBs listed above)? Russell Wilson is not the problem here if that is the case.

 

[kearly]

It's an awful lot of money to pay a game manager.

Would be more accurate to say he's a sandlot player. Though it's true, guys that run around and make magic happen usually aren't the highest paid in sport. Doesn't mean they aren't worth it, of course.

I thought you would have been the last one, not the first, to fall for my sarcasm.

Dammit!

 

[kearly]

It's interesting to me that Russell's QB rating is nearly the same in wins (95.2) vs. losses (94.3). He is also 2-9 in games where the defense allows at least 24 points -- the average points scored by an NFL team is 24.3. That puts us in the bottom half of the league in winning percentage (.182) in such games since 2012. This data supports the idea that the play of the defense is the single greatest determinant of our success.

At the same time, Russell is the perfect QB for Carroll's offensive system. He throws an accurate and catchable ball, avoids sacks and INTs, and complements the running game. He also tends to be at his strongest at the end of games, which is a rare trait only found in the best QBs:


Compare this trend to a QB like Colin Kaepernick:

Good stuff. Those charts are very interesting. I always suspected that Wilson did better with more volume, and later in games in general. And the reverse for Kaep.

Regarding the 2-9 stat, I look at it in terms of points per drive. For Seattle, allowing 24 points would mean allowing something like 2.4 to 3.0 points per drive. Very few QBs on teams built on defense and running the football would win many games with such extremely high points per drive allowed numbers.

 

[AbsolutNET]

Yesterday, I admit I let this make me sour.

But after some thought I don't mind if he's the highest paid QB in the NFL.

As long as good chunk of that money (25-40%) is tied into performance based incentives that only pay like an elite QB If he performs like an elite QB with high end production.

If he wants to paid like that without the performance based integrity then my original statement still stands... screw him.

Problem with that is if they put those kind of incentives in there, then you can bet there will also be things like he must get 500+ attempts, etc. Without attempts he cannot meat those incentives, and as we know on this team and win this system he will never get the attempts needed to meet the goals you are talking about. FYI he is an Elite QB already he just does it differently then others because of the system he is in.

Wake up, Ashton. He isn't going to take you back.

:lol:

 

[hawknation2015]

The tl;dr version: If you're going to pay a QB, more than top QB money, he better be able to not only get volume stats, but put up good efficiency stats much like Manning, Rodgers and co. have been able to do for years. If Wilson is not able to become that guy, then we should move on if he refuses to budge from his current stance, because he will have to become like a Rodgers, or Manning if we ever want to win a superbowl again under Carroll. While I think Wilson can be a decent volume passer I do not ever think he will be a Manning or Rodgers even when you factor in his running.

Of all QBs under the age of 30, Luck and Wilson are the clear #1 and #2. The gap to #3 is enormous. The third best 20-something QB would be Kaep or Newton right now, and as recent drafts have proven, breaking into the NFL at QB didn't suddenly get easier.

If Russell is the 2nd or 3rd best QB in five years, by the end of this upcoming contract, it seems reasonable to pay him like a top 3 QB.

As far as championships go, a difference in pay of a couple million a year isn't going to be the difference in winning a championship. Especially if the cap continues to rise by about $9 million every year. Since 2003 Joe Flacco is the only QB to win it all that isn't at least a decent bet for the HoF, and Joe Flacco was quickly made one of the highest paid QBs after he won.

Matt Ryan is pretty damn good . . . certainly better than Newton or Kaepernick.

 

[kearly]

According to O'Neil, the Seahawks are holding firm to Russell Wilson's contract being FOUR years, $80 million ($20 million a year, for just four years).

Sounds like a very reasonable starting point in negotiations.

If Wilson is willing to take Aaron Rodgers money (5/110), Seattle should jump at it. It would be a huge mistake to wait until Andrew Luck signs his deal next year, which will probably be for $25 million. If Luck gets $25 million, guess how much Russell and his agent will consider their floor?

And if they wait until next year, they can't use Wilson's last cheap year to help lessen the blow of the cap hit.

I would be very surprised if Wilson isn't signed sometime this year.

 

[Tical21]

If my numbers are right, the Mannings are the only QB's since 2003 to have won a Super Bowl while being paid in the top-5 of QB salaries in the NFL. All the rest were QB's on lesser contracts, that got paid after winning the big one, and this prevented their franchises from surrounding them with enough talent to win any more.

It's pretty simple, you pay your QB an obscene amount of money, you have just prevented yourself from winning more Super Bowls. Don't fall for the trap John.

 

[Bigpumpkin]

Me thinks that perhaps Russell has been listening to the wrong people.

 

[Russ Willstrong]

If Wilson wants to be the highest paid player in NFL then he CAN will it by getting to free agency while gifting Seattle a 4th season of cheap elite qb play. It doesn't make sense for him to settle for 1.5 million in 2015 only to be compensated with a lesser contract than he deserves. He is the most successful qb in Seahawks history and has one of the best starts in NFL history yet he has so much to prove to doubters. The reality is he is willing to bet on himself and his legacy by playing out his contract especially if this organization doesn't have his back.

Critics who say he wins because of Lynch and LBoom--truth be told Wilson wins because he responds to challenges and has done ever since he started playing. He won't see volume passing in Seattle and won't win MVP titles operating in the shadow of this defense. He's been a free agent (in college) and his skillet is more adaptable than people credit him with. Wilson is a quick study who's proven effective in multiple offense in college as well as in Seattle as it evolved to include zone read plays. We know what he can do with a good running back but he has been proficient in a pass first offense at NC State.
His willingness to bet on himself is what makes him great. What's more he knows his worth and realize the doubters are among the kings in every crowd.
And as much as we hate to hear...this is his leverage to get the compensation and recognition he deserves.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

Me thinks that perhaps Russell has been listening to the wrong people.

So you think he should take the 4 year 80M?

Seems to me like he and his agent have a point, he's been a top 5 QB since his 2nd year, led his team to back to back SB's, is a pillar of the community and has the #1 selling jersey in the league making money hand over fist for the Hawks and the league. Why doesn't he deserve to be paid like a top 5 QB?

Now I'm totally against giving him UFA status after this contract, but other than that...........pay the man.

 

[ImTheScientist]

Can't the hawks just force him to play out his contract, then tag him three years in a row?