Wednesday was the day everyone in the Seahawks’ world was waiting for. Kam Chancellor is back. The Pro Bowl strong safety, who held out the previous 55 days, returned to the fold.
Chancellor was holding out because of dissatisfaction with his contract. In the 2013 offseason Chancellor signed a four-year, $28 million extension that runs through 2017. At the time it made Chancellor one of the highest-paid safeties in the NFL. However, since then Chancellor has seen his peers sign contracts that now dwarf his. More importantly, Chancellor has no guaranteed money in his contract beyond this season, meaning the Seahawks could cut him following the season and he’d be out of luck.
The Seahawks went 0-2 while Chancellor was gone, and Chancellor missed out on two paychecks totaling $535,294, so both sides lost in this exchange. Neither Chancellor nor Seahawks coach Pete Carroll was talking about any of the business aspects regarding Chancellor’s return, so we don’t know if there have been any contract concessions made or fines from training camp rescinded. However, early reports suggested Chancellor came in on his own accord.
Chancellor said he made his decision to return Tuesday, then flew to Seattle from Los Angeles on Tuesday night. His teammates found out about his return Wednesday morning.
Chancellor is apparently in great shape. Carroll said Chancellor weighed in at a svelte 226 pounds and a minuscule 6-percent body fat. Chancellor said he’d be ready to play Sunday. Carroll took a slightly more cautious tone, but did say he’s taking the approach that Chancellor will play.
Chancellor is eligible for a roster exemption for two weeks, allowing him to practice with the team and get back into game shape without Seattle having to cut anyone from it 53-man roster. However, in order to activate Chancellor for a game the Seahawks would have to make room.
Here’s what they’re saying:
KAM CHANCELLOR
On why he decided to come back now:
“I just feel like the time is now. I’ve always been a guy who follows my heart. Just watching my teammates and my team play, week to week, that first and second game, watching those losses hurt me, being the leader that I am. So I think the time is now to come back, put all business to the side and address that after the season, just get back to work.”
On the reception from his teammates:
“I was happy to be here seeing everybody smiling. Everybody welcomed me with open arms. It was like I was never gone, like I never missed a beat, like we never missed a beat with each other. It felt good just coming back and being around the guys and actually going through walkthrough.”
On what it was like watching the first two games:
“It was very hard because, not taking away from anybody else, but I knew I could make a difference, so it was very hard.”
On whether he was prepared to sit out the entire season:
“It was a thought in mind when it first came about and we were going over business. But like I said, my teammates, the organization, it just means a little more to me.”
On how prepared he is to play:
“I trained like crazy. I always stay prepared. I always believe in staying ready so you don’t have to get ready.”
“I know I can play Sunday.”
On possible backlash from the fans:
“People are going to make opinions when they don’t know your situation when they don’t know exactly what is going on. So I forgive those who understand what is going on and those who don’t understand what’s going on, because if God can forgive I can also. So I’m looking forward to playing in front of the 12s and letting them roar.”
On the contract situation:
“Those are things I would rather deal with at the end of the season. Right now this is about coming back and playing football.”
PETE CARROLL
On having Chancellor back:
“It’s been a long process getting him here, but we’re really thrilled that he’s here. He’s a big part of our program, he always has been, he’s a fantastic leader. He’s just one of the blood-and-guts guys of this program and has been forever. We’re thrilled to have him back and we’re ready to go to work.”
“It’s good to have the big fella back.”
On whether Chancellor will play Sunday:
“My thought is that we are going to go in with the approach that he will play, but we are going to take it one day at a time. If he doesn’t, he doesn’t. It will depend on how he responds to the workload and we are just going to gauge it. If he doesn’t play, he doesn’t play. I know he really wants to and we would like him to as well. He’s in magnificent shape and razor thin and sharp.”
On the reception in the locker room:
“The guys have received him with open arms. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t some feelings about it. It was a difficult time for us because we missed him so much and we care so much about him. Not being here, it was hard knowing that he wasn’t here. But we’re fine about all of that. Guys were excited to see him. He’s excited to be back, and we just move forward.”
On what his return means for the defense:
“We look a little bit bigger, a little stronger and all that.”
“He’s played with us for five years. He knows our system inside and out. We’ve built our system around the play that he’s generated for us.”
“He’s better than anyone in the world at doing what he does for us.”
“Well, there’s nobody like him. There’s nobody who plays like him. He’s an extremely unique football player.”
MICHAEL BENNETT
Bennett was often compared to Chancellor because he has also voiced his displeasure with his contract situation, but chose to come to training camp rather than hold out:
“I think people just wanted something to talk about, try to make a reason why I’m here and why he’s not here and try and play us against each other. But of course we talked all the time and compared and said it wasn’t the same, we were going through two different things and we supported each other in whatever we do.”
“Why would you resent him? If you’re a true teammate you don’t resent your teammates when they make decisions. A true teammate comforts his teammate, makes sure he understands that we care about him. If you have hostility in communication, it just wouldn’t work.”
RICHARD SHERMAN
“It’s great to get him back, it’s great to get him back out there. I think he’ll have a seamless transition. He seems excited to be out there, he seems in shape, so it will be fantastic.”
“I don’t think anyone’s concerned about, ‘why now,’ or, ‘what made him change his mind.’ I think people were just happy to have him back in the building.”
BOBBY WAGNER
“I think he’s a presence on the field. He’s definitely someone you have to account for when you’re scheming against him. It’s going to definitely be a good addition having him back.”
“You understand the business. You understand that aside from football there is a business side to it. They have to take care of everything, so you can’t really hold anything personal to the player. It’s part of the business and you just got to hope it works out and pray for the best.”
K.J. WRIGHT
“Sometimes in football, as a player you have to back up a guy no matter what. You might not like it, bit you just got to respect it and support him 100 percent. That’s what we did, and I guess that support helped get him back.”
DeSHAWN SHEAD
“I think it’s great to have him back as a team. He’s one of our leaders and captains of this team. Just to have him back and have that presence — we’re a family. When he was gone we definitely missed him because it’s a brotherhood in here. It’s just a great feeling to have him back and have that presence back. It’s like having one of your brothers come back.”
DION BAILEY
“He really is the captain of the ship, man. Overall he’s a leader, a genuine person. He genuinely wants to see everybody succeed. He doesn’t help people or not help people depending on whether it benefits him or not. He really wants everybody to reach their maximum potential. Having a guy like that in the locker room is huge.”
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