Seattle Seahawks can survive without Kam Chancellor

Seattle Seahawks star strong safety Kam Chancellor is one of the best in the business at the position, and his decision to hold out for more money is a noble one, especially since he bases his game on doling out punishing hits that can sometimes be just as damaging to the player inflicting the pain. A unique talent who knows exactly how to cover tight ends and is sure-handed in the running game, Chancellor holds plenty of value to the Seahawks defense as a man with few weaknesses.

ALSO ON SPIN ZONE: Where Do Seahawks Safeties Rank Among NFL’s Best?

However, he’s fighting a losing battle, and the word “leverage” quickly springs to mind. Unlike Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant, who was a special case in a contract year and on a team that leans on him, Chancellor isn’t a non-QB who has leverage on his team. The Seahawks know that they have Chancellor locked up for a few more seasons, and they know that they are under no obligation to pay him more money. Chancellor would lose $267,467 per week if he holds out of games, so I’m not one to buy the fact that he’s willing to hold out of real games, even if he says he is.

More from Seattle Seahawks

Some time off in the offseason will do Chancellor’s body well, so I doubt the Seahawks care too much about him missing time in the preseason. They clearly can’t afford to pay him more money given their cap situation, as even their expressed interest in star guard Evan Mathis is a pipe dream with how little capital they have left.

And even if Chancellor holds out and the Seahawks could somehow afford to give into his demands, I have a feeling that they’d rather play hardball and save the money or (if they somehow can) spend on Mathis instead.

As weird as this is to say about somebody who is as incredible of a player as Chancellor is, he needs his weekly game-checks from the Seahawks more than they need him. Free safety Earl Thomas, whose status was previously in doubt, is, as per head coach Pete Carroll, “fully healed”, via Seahawks official site beat writer John Boyle.

Thomas’s once-up-in-the-air status was pointed to as a possible sliver of leverage for Chancellor, but the 27-year-old’s only hope at earning a raise is for the ‘Hawks to feel compassionate towards a player who has been instrumental to their success in each of the past two seasons (especially in 2013 when he was covering elite tight ends like they were suddenly Gary Barnidge clones).

But the beat can go on without Chancellor. They have Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright, Bruce Irvin, and even the exciting second-year OLB Kevin Pierre-Louis as linebackers who can cover, play the run, and/or rush the passer effectively. They have Thomas and Richard Sherman in the secondary, and their depth at cornerback is still fine, even if they are no longer “sacked” a the position.

If Kam Chancellor is serious about his hold out and misses games, then the Seahawks will undoubtedly suffer. There’s no way to dispute that, especially since Chancellor is an all-around, playmaking beast. But the Seahawks are, unfortunately for the former Virginia Tech star, also in a better position to replace any absences from their strong safety this year than they were in the past two seasons, and that’s thanks to second-year pro Dion Bailey.

Dec 21, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor (31) and safety Earl Thomas (29) against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Seahawks defeated the Cardinals 35-6. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

With upgraded responsibilities due to Chancellor’s ongoing holdout, Bailey has been one of the stars of training camp for Seattle this offseason, and we’re all left wondering if the NFL completely whiffed on him coming out of college. He was an undrafted free agent in 2014 despite being a star for the USC Trojans who displayed ball skills, aggressiveness, and uncanny and underrated instincts. Bailey was so smart that the Trojans played him close to the line of scrimmage, as he could read plays while lining up as something of a linebacker.

There’s no doubt that Bailey isn’t in the same stratosphere as Chancellor as a player, and he isn’t as natural in coverage deeper down the field. But his excellent three-cone drill and shuttle times (both 20 and 60-yard) show that he has the quickness and agility to succeed as a strong safety in the NFL, and he showed off fully legit tackling ability by making some “wow” open-field plays in the team’s last preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Since Chancellor is unlikely to hold out for a large period of time due to the money lost, I don’t think the Seattle Seahawks will be overly worried here. They’ll get a chance to see more of an impressive young player who could be the next steal for a Seahawks organization that is notorious for picking up underrated defensive backs.

If Bailey flops, then it’s not a big deal for the Seahawks, simply because this is a team built for success throughout the regular season, rather than a team that will be sweating bullets if they drop a game because of Chancellor’s absence (and that’s probably a worst-case scenario, since individual players who aren’t QBs don’t mean as much for Super Bowl-caliber teams…they are built on a collective).

Although the Bailey hype train should be held in check, the fact of the matter is that Chancellor doesn’t have leverage here, and the Seahawks have no reason to be pressed into getting anything done for both financial and- this hurts the SS’s case the most- on-field reasons.

Next: Where Do Seahawks TEs Rank Among NFL's Best?

More from NFL Spin Zone

Home/Seattle Seahawks