Seattle Seahawks: Is Frank Clark on the trade market?

The Seattle Seahawks recently franchise tagged defensive end Frank Clark, but now trade rumors are swirling.

On March 4, the Seattle Seahawks placed the franchise tag on stud pass rusher Frank Clark, buying the two sides more time to come to a long-term deal. For those who don’t know, the franchise tag is a one-year deal which players are supposed to be required to play under. It’s a way for teams to prevent top talents from entering free agency and ensure the players remain with the organization for at least one more year.

The salaries players earn under the franchise tag are determined by position and change every year. As a defensive end, Clark will earn $17.128 million with Seattle in 2019, assuming he signs the tag and shows up to play.

In the wake of Clark being tagged, however, he is reportedly prepared to hold out and not sign the tag in hope of reaching an agreement on a long-term deal. Because of that, and because of the premium that pass-rushers are at in the modern NFL, trade rumors are rumbling as FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer is reporting that several teams are interested in trading for Clark, among others.

If Seattle is really considering trading Clark, they wouldn’t be the only team putting a tagged player on the market. Kansas City has opened Dee Ford, another great pass rusher, up for trade despite tagging him as well. A similar situation happened last year when the Miami Dolphins franchised Jarvis Landry, but then traded him away to Cleveland.

However, the Ford situation is complicated by a defensive scheme change that puts Ford at a disadvantage and the Dolphins weren’t nearly as competitive as the Seahawks.

Clark and Seattle don’t have the issues that appear in those two situations, and the team is still hoping to sign Clark to a long-term deal, securing the player who has anchored their defensive line in the post-Cliff Avril/Michael Bennett era. The only apparent problem is that Clark has said he won’t sign the franchise tag until a new deal is in place.

These trade rumors around Clark are likely just that — rumors. Seattle prioritized retaining Clark this offseason and the team is looking to lock him into a long, lucrative contract. Trading Clark at this point would seem counterproductive, especially when considering the Seahawks have no one ready to replace him.

The main team mentioned as a potential trade partner was the Buffalo Bills, but that rumor has since been squashed. This seems more like a case of teams doing their due diligence and inquiring about a player just because there’s no reason not to at least ask around.

Clark has been with the Seahawks since 2015 when the team took him with the 63rd overall pick in the second round of the draft. In his four seasons, he has recorded 35 sacks and set a personal best in 2018 with 13. While trade rumors will continue to swirl, don’t expect the Seahawks to seriously consider trading Clark. He’s too important to give up, even for a high draft pick.