The Seahawks held the last of their nine OTAs on Thursday, and it was the third that was open to the media. Here’s some notes from the day:
– One of the continuing stories of the offseason for the Seahawks is the contract situation of receiver Doug Baldwin. Baldwin, who had a breakout 2015 as he caught 78 passes for 1,069 yards and a franchise-record 14 touchdowns, is entering the final season of a three-year, $13 million contract he signed prior to the 2014 season.
The Seahawks would like to get Baldwin locked down before he becomes eligible for free agency, but following his stellar 2015 Baldwin can command a big pay increase, with numbers in the neighborhood of $10 million per season being bandied about. However, on Thursday Baldwin deflected all questions regarding his contract situation, meaning we have no new insight on where negotiations stand.
– Defensive end Frank Clark reiterated that he’s a defensive end and not a linebacker. There was speculation earlier this offseason that Clark could be a candidate to replace Bruce Irvin at the strong-side linebacker position, speculation that increased following a brief moment when the Seahawks’ website listed Clark as a linebacker and 15 pounds lighter than the 272 he played at last season.
Clark confirmed that he has lost weight — he’s now listed at 260 pounds. However, he insisted that he remains a defensive end, that rushing the passer is what he wants to do, and that he was never was asked by the Seahawks to switch to linebacker.
But Clark wasn’t the only defensive end subject to those rumors. Cassius Marsh was also rumored to be a candidate to take over Irvin’s role. Marsh is also down weight, being listed at 245 pounds after playing at 254 last year, and he’s been spotted lining up at strong-side linebacker and dropping into pass coverage during OTAs. So it appears the Seahawks are looking at Marsh as a serious candidate to fill the vacancy.
– OTAs are voluntary, and Thursday saw more players absent than the previous two times media was allowed to observe. Among those who were not present Thursday were cornerbacks Richard Sherman, Jeremy Lane and Brandon Browner, safety Earl Thomas, and defensive end Cliff Avril. They joined defensive ends Michael Bennett and Chris Clemons, who chose not to attend OTAs at all, meaning the Seahawks had just half of their first-team defense on the field.
– Among those who have been out injured, we had our first glimpse of tackle J’Marcus Webb in action. Webb, signed as a free agent from Oakland and expected to start at right tackle, had been out with a calf injury. He participated in unit drills Thursday, though he did not participate in the scrimmage portion of practice.
Seattle’s other projected starting tackle, Garry Gilliam, remained sidelined as he recovers from having a cyst removed from his knee. Others on the sidelines because of injury included tight end Jimmy Graham (knee), running back Thomas Rawls (ankle), running back C.J. Prosise (hip flexor) and receiver Kenny Lawler (unknown).
– With OTAs now over, the Seahawks move on to the next phase of the offseason, which is veteran minicamp next Tuesday through Thursday. Minicamp is mandatory, so we should see everyone present and accounted for. If someone doesn’t show up, we’ll know that player is a strong candidate to hold out once training camp arrives. Bennett, who’s voiced his displeasure with his contract, would seem to have the most motivation to hold out. However, Bennett has always shown up in the past, despite sounding off on his contract.
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