Seattle Seahawks: Russell Wilson trade rumors are ridiculous

Now that we’re in the boring part of the offseason, speculation about the Seattle Seahawks trading their star quarterback has begun.

You can tell some people are desperate to write articles, myself included, or fill time on television shows. The recent speculation that Russell Wilson might ask to be traded from the Seattle Seahawks is absolutely ridiculous. Tis the season for rampant rumor spreading though, so let’s unbox and then destroy this idea.

FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd is one of the people jumping on the trade bandwagon. He recently stated on his show that he heard rumblings in the agent world about Wilson going to New York. Stop it. Just stop it. The Seahawks aren’t going to move on from Wilson if for no other reason than they have no way of replacing him.

Seattle proved in 2018 that they can make the playoffs with their current team makeup, so why would the organization ruin all of then and begin a one or two year search for a new quarterback who will probably be nowhere near as good as Wilson?

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As of right now, there have been no indications that Wilson wants out of Seattle. Bob Condotta for The Seattle Times wrote an excellent piece reacting to Cowherd’s claims and analyzing the Wilson situation as a whole. He didn’t seem on edge or worried about Wilson leaving. Since he’s more in line with the Seahawks, I feel safe in believing that there’s been no real indication that Wilson wants out of Seattle. Zac Wassink of NFL Spin Zone also shut down the Wilson to New York idea as well.

The strongest claim that Wilson will leave Seattle comes from the fact that he and the organization haven’t talked about a contract extension. 2016 was the first year of Wilson’s four-year, $87.6 million current deal, which runs through the end of the 2019 season. If a deal isn’t done, the Seahawks could franchise tag Wilson and pay him between $30 and 31 million for the 2020 season.

That seems like a lot of money, but Aaron Rodgers is making $33.5 million per year on his four-year, $134 million extension that he signed last offseason. In a league where record deals are being handed out every year, Wilson looks like he’s next in line for a big deal. So, anywhere between 30 and 31 million dollars really isn’t that big of a deal considering he’d probably make more than that per year on a new deal anyway.

Last year, a couple of quarterbacks signed massive contracts. We already mentioned Rodgers, but Kirk Cousins signed a three-year, $84 million contract with Minnesota, Jimmy Garoppolo signed a five-year, $137.5 million deal with San Francisco, and Matt Ryan got a five-year $150 million extension with Atlanta. That means Cousins is making $28 million a year and Garoppolo is making $27.5 million a year.

Rodgers and Ryan are the only quarterbacks in the NFL making an average of $30 million or more a year. Look at how massive those contracts are though! Wilson will make over $30 million a year on average in his next deal, which is basically the equivalent of the franchise tag. So, why would Seattle put off a new deal or why would Wilson be upset with the financial situation?

Until Wilson, someone from his camp or someone from the Seahawks comes out and confirms Cowherd’s claims, I don’t see a real case here. Wilson has had so much success with the Seahawks and has a lot of ties to the community and his teammates.

A trade would just leave Seattle floundering without a quarterback anyways, and the price of using the franchise tag versus signing a new deal isn’t that different. This whole thing feels ridiculous and unfounded.