Russell Wilson - What would you pay and who would you trade for him?

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Without Wilson they would have no use for a WR.

They wouldn't have a use for Jimmy Graham either by that rationale. They wouldn't deal Wilson if they didn't think they could replace him, and they would hope that someone they drafted with the 1sts they received could step in.

[Mace]

Seattle has always had tight pockets and have over $9.5 currently available in cap space and a projected $38 million for next year (assuming $150 million cap).

So here is the issue at hand, the Hawks have 12 starters that are set to become FA's next year;
Russell Wilson
Russell Okung
Jermaine Kearse
Bruce Irvin
Brandon Mebane
Jon Ryan
Bobby Wagner
Ricardo Lockette
JR Sweezy
Tony McDaniel
Will Blackmon
Jeremy Lane

All of those players are guys they likely want to resign but have to find the money to do it. Giving Wilson $24+ million puts a huge hole in the projected $38 million in cap space. Okung is arguably a Top 10 LT and will get paid a good amount of money. Irvin, Wagner, and Mebane are guys who will also be getting hefty raises.

Also the Top 6 salaries for the Hawks next year are Richard Sherman, Marshawn Lynch, Cliff Avril, Jimmy Graham, Micheal Bennett, and Earl Thomas. None of those guys are getting reworked imo.

That's the issue the Hawks find themselves in currently.

You know, that's why I think megabucks QB's are as much of a curse as a blessing these days. You either decimate your team to keep one, or count on your team to cushion your lack of one. I wonder if you aren't better off with a middling QB on a great team instead of trying to patch together a team around a megabucks one.

People won't like my saying it, but New England is fortunate to have Brady's lack of greed and a team concept that keeps salaries reasonable, with a solid enough organization to keep them upper level. It's remarkable.

I'd pass on Wilson, I'm still not sure he isn't the right guy in the right place at the right time with the right team in the right organization.

[Mr. Pink]

Realistically...

I don't know if the Bills would have enough to give up to acquire him.

Seattle, as DB already pointed out, is gonna have quite a few holes next season as they won't have the cap space to bring back everyone even if Wilson is traded or allowed to test FA.

Those holes will require young cheap talent. Seattle recycles receivers and doesn't care who's on the outside so guys like Watkins and Woods are likely out. Talent on the o-line that's good isn't cheap. D-line talent isn't cheap. LB talent isn't cheap. Secondary talent isn't cheap.

So realistically you're looking at the Bills being able to offer 1st and 2nd round picks for the next 2 to 3 seasons and I dunno if that would be enough to entice a trade. Although I might be willing to see them bite on Tyrod Taylor as he's a guy of similar skill set that maybe Pete Carroll thinks he could coach him up and get results with playing time.

[Ingtar33]

I'd give the Hawks whatever they wanted. RW is a good kid, a better QB and that just happens to be the most important position on the football field in the NFL right now.

[BertSquirtgum]

Russell Wilson will be demanding a huge contract, upwards of $25 million a year. Seattle is standing back at this point. Not that they would realistically trade him away, but there's a point where it's getting too expensive for them and the right offer would get a deal done. That would likely include a multiple player and draft picks deal.

We all think that we're a quarterback away from being elite. Which player would you trade along with draft picks for Wilson?

Nothing

[yordad]

People won't like my saying it, but New England is fortunate to have Brady's lack of greed and a team concept that keeps salaries reasonable, with a solid enough organization to keep them upper level. It's remarkable.

Do you not think for a second NE pays Brady under the table? Seems pretty obvious.

[better days]

2 1sts and Dareus gets it done and sign him to the contract you were going to give Dareus.

If Seattle tags him, two first rnd picks is the most they can get.

Dareus is off the table.

[IlluminatusUIUC]

If Seattle tags him, two first rnd picks is the most they can get.

Dareus is off the table.

There is a higher level of franchise tag called an exclusive rights tag that prevents any other team from signing a guy to an offer sheet. It's crazy expensive, so it's only ever used on QBs, like Flacco and Brees. The Hawks would almost certainly use that tag if they were forced to.

[better days]

There is a higher level of franchise tag called an exclusive rights tag that prevents any other team from signing a guy to an offer sheet. It's crazy expensive, so it's only ever used on QBs, like Flacco and Brees. The Hawks would almost certainly use that tag if they were forced to.

Yeah, as you said though, that is CRAZY expensive.

The Hawks would be better off signing Wilson to a new contract than to put that tag on him.

[IlluminatusUIUC]

Yeah, as you said though, that is CRAZY expensive.

The Hawks would be better off signing Wilson to a new contract than to put that tag on him.

Absolutely true but the tag is the last resort to force him to stay. It gives them another 3-4ish months to get a deal done once others have set the market.

I imagine once either Luck or Wilson signs the other will be right behind.

[GingerP]

The difference between the exclusive and non-exclusive tags isn't that big. This year the non-exclusive tag for QB's would be about $18.5M. The exclusive tag would have been a little less than $20M.

The question for Seattle is, with Wilson wanting to be the highest-paid QB in the NFL they are looking at funding guarantees between $50M - $60M dollars. That is a big cash outlay, expecially when the guy isn't a free agent yet.

With Wilson wanting to be paid like he is a free agent already, Seattle is looking at the alternative. They can keep him this year for real short money, about $1.5M. Then, even if they have to exclusive tag him the following 2 years it will be around $20M and $24M. That is $45.5M over the next 3 years, instead of having to fund well over $50M this year just to secure his guarantees.

Thus, the negotiation. I would expect the team and Wilson will agree on a deal that pays him somewhere between the $45M over the next 3 years the $75M he wants over that same span. I'd expect him to sign a 5-year deal that pays him about $100M to $110M over that span, with guarantees around $45M-$50M.

Seattle wants to keep Wilson, he is the face of the team. Wilson doesn't want to play this year for $1.5M only to face the tag next year, no matter what he says. They will come to an agreement at some point, this is just the negotiation going on right now.

[GingerP]

BTW, the exclusive tag is the average of the top 5 salaries for the position at the end of free agency this year, or 120% of the prior year salary.

The non-exclusive tag takes the franchise tag amounts at the position over the last 5 years, then divides them by the total salary cap amount per team over that 5 year period. A rolling 5-year average of how much of the salary cap that position's franchise tag takes up, then takes that percentage of this year's salary cap as the non-exclusive offer amount.