Seattle Seahawks: Doug Baldwin Deserves Contract Extension
By Nick Ziegler
The Seattle Seahawks saw the rise of a great player in 2015, and now the time has come to give Doug Baldwin a contract extension.
Last year, the Seattle Seahawks handed Russell Wilson a big contract extension to make him their franchise quarterback for years to come. Since drafting Wilson, the Seahawks have been one of the best franchises in the NFL, as they hit the jackpot when they took a chance drafting him.
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When Wilson started with the Seahawks, the team was built on having a great defense and a strong running game. Wilson wasn’t asked to do a lot early on in his career, as the Seahawks were rather content with just having him throw the ball around 20 times a game and use his legs to scramble for a few key first downs.
This was a formula that helped the Seahawks win a Super Bowl, but that success also had an effect on the team. With the NFL being a salary cap league, it makes it very difficult for teams to repeat as champions. Since winning the Super Bowl, the Seahawks have lost a ton of players in free agency on both sides of the ball, and that led to a bit of a change in their offensive philosophy in 2015.
An offseason trade to acquire Jimmy Graham from the New Orleans Saints was a sign that the Seahawks were going to be asking more from Wilson in 2015. Graham didn’t have a great season for the Seahawks in 2015 before his season came to an early end, as it was Doug Baldwin who instead became a star for the Seahawks.
After showing signs of improvement the two seasons prior to 2015, Baldwin took advantage of the Seahawks becoming more of a passing offense and was able to have a career-year. Last season, Baldwin totaled 78 receptions, 1,069 receiving yards, and 14 receiving touchdowns.
After the great season, the Seahawks are now looking to get Baldwin a contract extension to keep the emerging receiver with Wilson for years to come.
“It is a big deal, and it’s a very serious negotiation as they all are,” Carroll said to Jayson Jenks of the Seattle Times. “But he’s done an incredible job for us and been a great teammate. Hopefully, eventually, we’ll get something worked out. I hope it happens. The intent is to get him signed and secured for a good while. So we’ll see if we can get that done.”
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A few other receivers have recently received contract extensions that are of similar level to Baldwin. Both Keenan Allen and Allen Hurns got four-year contract extensions this offseason worth $45 million and $40 million respectively.
The framework of those two deals will likely be in the range that Baldwin will be looking for, as he proved that he is a very valuable player to the Seahawks. With some time before training camp starts, look for the Seahawks to try and get a deal done with Baldwin to lock him up for the next few seasons.