Seahawks Safety Postion

The Seattle Seahawks are a week away now from training camp. One of the big question marks is what the Seahawks will do at the safety positions. First of all a few weeks ago Kam Chancellor announced his retirement so his position is open. The other is the safety position across from Chancellor as well. Right now Earl Thomas holds that position but no one knows what he will do or what the Seahawks will do. Thomas has one year left on his contract but he wants to either sign a new contract most likely for four years  as the highest paid in the NFL. That amount could be anywhere between $45 and $60 million for those four years. Thomas doesn't want to be here if doesn't get signed before the season begins or he likely will stay out of camp. Of course the Seahawks can level fines against him as well.  The thought is that the Seahawks may trade him but getting the true value for him is unlikely.  At this point he is the best defensive player on the team even before trading Michael Bennett, releasing Richard Thomas and the retirement of Chancellor and Cliff Avril. The only sure deal on the defense as the best guys are linebackers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright.

When it does come to the safety positions  veteran Bradley McDougald is the only sure one to start this season whether Thomas is on the team or not. He is likely starting at strong safety without Chancellor but could move over to free safety if Thomas is no longer on the team. He has played both positions when Thomas was injured and also when Kam Chancellor went down as well. How the other safeties perform will decide where he lands. He could play a lot at both positions depending on the other players. Personally I would like to see Thomas back however if he doesn't really want to be on the team and the Seahawks want to wait until his contract is over to sign him to a new contract. I hope the Seahawks would trade him at some point to get at least a draft pick or more. Having him leave without any compensation would be not so good. A lot could depend on how they feel about his health as well since he has been injured the last couple seasons. Can't blame Thomas for wanting to be the highest paid safety in the league and I am sure he wants to be the highest paid player on the Seahawks behind Russell Wilson. It will be interesting to see how the fans will react to Thomas if he holds out for a period of time and he isn't traded at all. He could miss up to half of the games before it would really hurt him not reporting. How the Seahawks react to fines will be as well. Whatever the case it can be a nightmare for the team. The Seahawks could be a team that doesn't make the playoffs with or without him. The offense will have to score better this coming season to make up for some of the weaknesses on the defense. We know the defense won't be as good as previous seasons but how good is in question.

Looking at other players on the safety position look at strong safety first: Maurice Alexander who played the last four years with the Los Angeles Rams. His best year was 2016 when he started and played in fourteen games. Last year he played in thirteen games but started in four only. Delano Hill who the Seahawks drafted in the third round out of Michigan in 2017 played in fifteen games in his rookie season though he didn't start a game. He is a likely starter if McDougald is over playing free safety. Alexander and Hill are the only ones shown listed as strong safety on the Seahawks roster. At free safety besides Thomas  I look at Alex Carter who was a third-round draft pick by the Detroit Lions in 2015 as a cornerback. He played two seasons with the Lions. He was converted to safety by the Seahawks but has spent most of his time on the practice squad. The Seahawks always like players have had trouble playin in the NFL though a high draft pick. We will have to see what chances he has to make the squad this season. Another player is T.J. Mutcherson  who the Seahawks signed as a college free agent out of University of Central Florida. It will be hard for him to make the squad however the Seahawks do have a history of free agents making the roster. The last free safety listed is Tedric Thompson who the Seahawks drafted in the fourth round last year. So he should have a good chance to make the roster again and may get in more playing time if Thomas sits out or is traded by the Seahawks. He played in nine games for the Seahawks last year without starting any. 

It is possible the Seahawks will look elsewhere for other safeties especially whatever happens with Thomas unless he decides to come into camp whether signed or not. I am sure we all hope that details will be able to work out with Thomas.  Going into camp and during camp I will look at other positions as well and how the players do during the pre-season games. Go Hawks!