UPDATE-- The contract is said to guarantee Lock only 12 million. Have to think he could have had more on the open market. Top linemen usually get between 15-20 guaranteed.
This is awesome news. The O line will clearly be improved from last year. Looks like Mr. Ruskell knew he was close with Lock when he used the tag on Trufant. Smart business if you ask me.
UPDATE-- Tom Ashworth now becomes a likely cut as he seems to be dead weight with a salary of 2 million for this season. Willis is clearly capable of being the backup. It also puts the O tackle in the first round idea to bed. Nobody takes a 1st rounder who won't see the field for 3-5 years.
Great news...and great job Ruskell. Now, dump Shaun.
ReplyDeleteYAY!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, this site is da bomb!
ReplyDeleteAnd yet again your site BLASTED TNT!
ReplyDeletemore good news, seattle has 7 million dollars added to the salary cap. this acording to john morgan from the blog fieldgulls
ReplyDeleteRuskell is on a roll. Awesome.
ReplyDeleteYup, that is from LTBE incentives. there is a post in the archives about it from a couple of weeks ago. I think it is called Pork Chop TD Threat, if you want more info on how it works. This was expected, it is called a cap credit
ReplyDeleteWooot! I believe that Lock was the key component of our own FA's this off-season. I was very uneasy using the tag on Truf when Lock was still unsigned. I guess Ruskell knows what he's doing after all. HAHA
ReplyDeleteGOOOO Hawks!
Go Lock and Ruskell!
At what point do we start seriously talking about going after Michael Turner. If we really just created $7 million in addditional cap room....
ReplyDeleteAnother step complete !
ReplyDeleteWhile I think he is a pretty soft run blocker the move still makes sense. He will slide over to LT once Walt retires.
ReplyDeleteWe have the best tackle situation in all of football.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't trade starting tackles with anyone for the '08 season.
Wahle ensures Spencer has at least one quality player besides him and gives us a decent player in the middle of our line.
This is just great! Great! I'm so damn excited! Good job Timmy! I wanted you dead after the Hutch thing but maybe you're coming around!
I doubt Ruskell had much if anything to do with this or it wouldn't have gotten done.
ReplyDeleteSeattle is not Locklear's hometown.
"Willis is clearly capable of being the backup."
On what is that based? This guy has done absolutely nothing to date.
I was curious about Turner also. What is his story? Is he a RFA or free agent? How old is he? Can you tell I don't follow the chargers at all?
ReplyDelete- PaulySINM
Michael Turner will be 26 at the start of the season. He was a RFA last year. There are going to be a lot of teams after him. He will get a large contract
ReplyDeleteThis a great site and I am very happy I came across it.
ReplyDeleteTurner will be a FA. Lock mentioned towards the end of the season that he wanted to stay in Seattle. It might not be his official hometown, but he definately backed up those sentiments by giving his adopted town a break.
ReplyDelete-SR Hawk
What do you guys think of Bo Scaife or Ben Troupe? Both UFA. I watched them play quite a bit in Nashville. I would just hate to see us use a 1st or 2nd round pick on a Te
ReplyDeleteI think Troupe sucks. Seems to be a bad and unwilling blocker. And an overrated receiving TE. If that's our stopgap guy, it's not good for the TE position.
ReplyDeleteGREAT NEWS! I'm damn excited. Mysticseaidiot, you're an idiot. Go back to TNT and fight with the morons there.
ReplyDeletemysticseachicken
ReplyDeleteyou suck
hey, great job on the site, i love it! came across it the other day and you're ahead of my former faves (fieldgulls, seahawks insider)
keep it up!
I am happy for Lock, truthfully, I have been thinking he was the most important free agent. Yes, Trufant is good but lets get it understand, o-line wins games. Even Denver with Bly and Bailey, the best DB duo in the game, can't win.
ReplyDeleteI hope the hometown discounts continue because that means winning. Locklear was not able to run block this year because Gray was overpowered at the point of attack forcing Locklear to be a step back to avoid defensive penetration. I think we will possess a formidable o-line.
Hot damn! This is good news!
ReplyDeleteI am really only going to say this once. Keep things nice kids. I am not going to play nazi blog master and start deleting comments, however please allow everyone to have their OWN opinion. Challenge yourselves to poke holes in each others arguments rather than low level name calling. Nothing discourages good discussion quicker than resorting to insulting each other.
ReplyDeleteNEED
ReplyDeleteRB
TE
DT
Really, that's it. We're close. We just need a big/bad DT for the defense. Perhaps Red Bryant in the 2nd round? He's a large 330 lb run stuffer.
The draft is RB rich so we don't have to have one in a certain round.
The TE is the tricky one. There's nobody in FA besides Crumpler who is a difference maker but he's going to be overpaid (at least it seems that way). We can't draft one and expect major '08 dividens. What to do?
Andrew... great point on Lock's spotty run blocking play this past season. It makes sense. Getting rid of Gray between Spencer and Lock and replacing him with a decent player will only make both of those guys better.
ReplyDeleteJust a thought about Red Bryant:
ReplyDeletethere is little to no chance he will become a seahawk. He has been known to have something our team will label "character issues" and these have recently come out. I can't remember where I read this, but it was either in the senior bowl practices, or the combine, but I think the senior bowl practices where he got into a fight with a very cool headed OT and "started throwing hay-makers." His budies had to restrain him.
I don't know what you think, but that is not a seattle type of player. That is besides the point that he is an injury risk, and we don't need a character-flawed version of Marcus Tubbs.
Great news for the O-line. Any confirmation on the Tru's long term deal that would be cap friendly?
ReplyDeleteTNT still doesn't have it up.
ReplyDeleteMichael, I would recommend that you put a call out to "Hawkstorian". The man is a capologist. He knows his shit.
ReplyDeleteThat's great news on Lock.
ReplyDeleteAs far as Turner, I think he'd be a huge upgrade. he's very big, strong and fast. he is everything you want in a RB, and he has very vey limited wear on the tires. If we cannot get Stewart or Mendenhall (who are both built similar to Turner) I think he'd be the best option. But he'd be costly for sure
I like Turner but I know I won't like his price tag.
ReplyDeleteConsider me an optimist, but the Hawks starting D-Line is TOUGH! Kerney and Tapp on the edges and Tubbs and Mebs on the interior! What is not to love about that line? Speed. Bulk. Toughness. And then the dynamic trio playing behind them! I know, Tubbs is an injury liability, but the optimist in me is dreaming of him playing an entire season. It's the off-season, a time for dreaming. (And the time for making dreams a reality, Thanks Mr. Ruskell!)
ReplyDeleteAwesome news on Lock, thanks again for the awesome blog, Michael.
ReplyDeleteThe ESPN article is a little strange... it sounded like it was 32 million including 12 million _of bonuses_, meaning 20 million of salary? I guess the 12 million could still be the only guaranteed if there is something voidable?
"Obviously Timmay! was sent to play with his toys and the adults in the front office worked this one out. Ruskell is too much of an imbicle to have gotten it done."
ReplyDeleteThe above was posted on the TNT blog by a clown named Nighthawk. Gee sounds a lot like mysticseachicken. Ban him now Mr. Steffes before he ruins this blog.
Since I am already dreaming. . . D.J. Hack will be re-signed by the Seahawks in the next month. Ruskell, recognize the importance of D.J.
ReplyDeleteYea, that is one of the things I like about this blog compared to TNT. More talking about football and less whining and name calling. That's a reflectection on Mike who is working hard to bring the news. People appreciate it. I know I do.
ReplyDeleteHere's hoping that everyone will shoot down the namecaller's etc. before they feel welcome here!
-PaulySINM
As long as we're dreaming, lets sign Turner, Hackett, Crumpler, and Faneca offensively and lets get Tubbs 2 new knees since his are shot and his career most likely over. Too bad b/c he was on his way to being very, very good.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't it seem like DJ is important for a game and then he is forgotten for quite a while? Will the injury bug always haunt him?
ReplyDelete-PaulySINM
I think he's too much of an injury risk to give big money to.
ReplyDeleteA guy like Wahle or Lock are durable guys who have proven they can play an entire season over and over again.
DJ has only proven to be a stud when healthy but that's few and far between.
Here's an idea...since we're already contemplating using a first round pick on an unknown commodity at RB (Mendenhall or Stewart who each have only had one good season), why not go after Marion Barber? If it only costs a first and third (if they tender at the highest), then we'd get a known commodity who is a beast and can perform in all three phases for a RB. He has low mileage and I think everyone would love the running style of the Barbarian over Alexander's shuffle...I'd prefer him over Turner.
ReplyDeleteI have no doubt that Locklear is a good RT, but I am curious to why some people think he will replace Walt at LT. RT and LT are very different positions and it seems to me that Locklear hasn't proven he can play LT. I imagine the coaching staff has a good idea of wether or not he can play on the left side. I wouldn't be suprised if we draft an LT early if they don't think Locklear can do it.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see Barber too - he's the hardest runner in the league, IMO, but I wouldn't give a 1st & 3rd. I'd give a 1st.
ReplyDeleteMendenhall seems to be moving up in the draft - I think he'll be gone before #25 - and I'm not sold on Stewart or McFadden. If Mendenhall isn't available, I'd pick Pat Simms or Kentwaan Balmer if one of them is there.
2nd round, I'm looking at TE, maybe Bennet or Carlson or Cottam. 3rd round is where we can probably pick up an RB - Matt Forte or Tashard Choice, maybe.
great news sounds like we got a deal.
ReplyDeletei don't know who watched the weigh in for TE but cottam is a very empressive locking TE.
I'd rather keep Shaun than sign/trade for a Cowboy (or Raider)...!
ReplyDeleteTurner is again a nice idea.
We should overpay to get Crumpler if overpaying is what it will take. We tried last year w/ D.Graham and he chose his hometown over Seattle. We're talking a final piece to the puzzle on offense, provided RB gets settled.
Balmer at DT/DL looks intriguing, I agree. I'll just have to trust that our front office can choose our next MVP back. Shaun wasn't a sure thing when we drafted him, either.
Sorry about the name calling. Just sick of seeing the same people bringing down TNT come here as well.
ReplyDeletePurple -- Don't stress it, lets just not feed the fire.
ReplyDeleteHawkfaninOK-- You should have been on the live blog, we were chatting on all the TE weigh ins. Cottam did look big and nasty
at 270 i expected more fat , not much there. guy looks like a beast think he would really jelp the running game.
ReplyDelete"While I think he is a pretty soft run blocker"
ReplyDeleteAnd that view is based on what, exactly? I hear it alot, but no one ever posts anything to support it.
"I am really only going to say this once. Keep things nice kids. I am not going to play nazi blog master and start deleting comments, however please allow everyone to have their OWN opinion. Challenge yourselves to poke holes in each others arguments rather than low level name calling. Nothing discourages good discussion quicker than resorting to insulting each other."
No sweat Michael, I'm used to that kind of response. It's what those you have no argument resort to. If you can't refute the message, attack the messenger.
Anon regarding Red Bryant; I saw that on a site called NFL Draft Scouts.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/profile.php?pyid=8859
Go down to Draft Scout Red Bryant News and look at the first posting there. That's where it is.
I don't think he has a history of that. What is probably going to be more of concern about Bryant is injuries, he tore an ACL, I think it was, in Nov of 2006.
For those who like the idea of acquiring Shaun Rogers, here's something from Great Blue Draft Report that GM's will take notice of:
"Lions to shop big, big DT… According to published reports in Detroit, the Lions are prepared to move on without Pro Bowl DT Shaun Rogers. The Lions will reportedly release Rogers if they can’t find a trade partner before the draft. And finding someone to take on Rogers’ $16M-plus cap figure for the next couple of years likely isn’t going to be easy. While still a productive player - he had 7 sacks in 2007 as a aprt-time player, Rogers, whose weight has been known to balloon up close to 400 pounds, has cartilage issues in his knees and ankles. Rogers was also suspended four games for violating the league's drug policy for testing positive for an illegal dietary supplement in 2006. Another strike, and he faces an eight-game suspension. The Lions are believed to be asking for a late first day pick for Rogers but likely will settle for just about anything they can get."
http://www.gbnreport.com/
Scroll down to January 24th to find that.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteLock played for Walt when he did not come to camp till last week when he was the franchise player
ReplyDeleteSheesh, the Ruskell bashing makes no sense. The guy just signed two of our biggest FA's AND our OL savior, Wahle--what else did you want from him? I bash Ruskell but good when he screws up, but he deserves some respect for these signings.
ReplyDeleteNow maybe he'll sign Brown and Hackett, and I will be a happy happy Hawk Fan!
-leshthomas
He has also played LT when we played the meaningless game against GB in '05 when we were 13-2.
ReplyDeleteI am a little surprised Lock got so much money. He fails to seal his man on runs way too often for 6million a year. I thought he would be lucky to get 4 million.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad he's staying though.
I don't know if I've said it before, but Nice Blog, Mike.
-leshthomas
hey mysticseafag shut up and go home you 300+ lb. homo, no one wants to listen to your crap. Are you so lame that you sit at home trying to piss people off that cheer for the same team you do. I would love to see you do a better job than ruskell, maybe you should go back to flippin burgers Mc homo
ReplyDelete