However, the article does create a little concern, when it implies that Leroy Hill may be a little harder to lock up. To quote the article...
“Hill could be an interesting case,” a team source told PFW. “Because he has been so overshadowed by Tatupu and Julian Peterson in Seattle, he could be a guy who just might want to test the market when the time comes.It seems that Leroy may want to find a spot where he can take top billing. This is understandable. He defintely is overshadowed by the two other linebackers. Hopefully though, Hill will realize that not only is the grass rarely greener when leaving an organization like the Seahawks, but Julian Peterson will not be around for ever. He would be the heir apparent to the spot of pass rushing specialist from the linebacker position.
The draft will probably tell us a lot about the signals the team is getting from Leroy and his representation. If they go linebacker high, we can expect that Leroy is more interested is being the top dog, than keeping one of the better position groups in all of football together. END
I think you're right, we'll have to read the tea leaves on draft day to get a sense of how confident the FO is that Leroy might be open to hanging around. I sure hope he does. Top billing, top schmilling.
ReplyDeleteI doubt something gets done for awhile, but hopefully it does.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping that Hill sees what Lofa and Trufant did and that Hill sees it as a sign that the Hawks want him back.
I think he stays,he knows how good he is and so do the seahawks.
ReplyDeleteif he does stay, how much will he get paid and will that make our starting LB corps the priciest in the league?
ReplyDeleteThis is the best lb group in the nfl,the seahawks need to keep them together.[PAY HIM].
ReplyDeleteYour right Shams it will make the LB the pricest in the league.
ReplyDeleteThe Hawks will have to let Peterson go next year to sign Hill.
I dont see Hill coming back. Which is crappy but they had to chose between Lofa or hill. I for one think they made the right move.
I imagine Hill would sing for a bit less than Lofa. Maybe 6/5yr 25-30 mil or something like that.
ReplyDeleteIt might be the most expensive LB group in the NFL. But there is nothing wrong with locking up the best group of 4-3 linebackers in the NFL long-term.
anon @1:55 (give us a monogram!) if the choice is between Hill and Peterson, that's a devil's dilemma right there.
ReplyDeleteI think Hill is actually better than JP but hasn't been utilized to his potential because of Marshall. Hill is a quality individual as well...I know this from my Clemson days where I still have connections. Hope he stays.
ReplyDeleteI agree Joey C.
ReplyDeleteShow him the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.
ReplyDeleteI love Hill, but I just don't think it would be fiscally responsible to sign on another long-term $6M+ LB.
ReplyDeleteForget LBs, think about how many high-dollar guys we have on our entire defense right now. There's no way we sign Hill to a big contract. Unfortunately, I think he's gone after next year.
No matter how vanilla it might sound to diehard Hawks fans, it's time to start building depth/future starters from the draft.
stallz you're probably right. we can get someone 80% as good through the draft for much less, and he will be incredibly lucky to line up next to Lofa and Peterson. Leroy, it's your contract year-- go "Hamburger" Hill on every play, man!
ReplyDeleteWait a second Stallz, seperate from whether or not he will be back or not, Leroy Hill is a textbook case of building with the draft. You take a guy in the mid rounds, he turns into a good starter with pro bowl potential, then you should sign him long term. Not every draft pick works out so well.
ReplyDeleteGranted we are tying up a lot of money in the defense, but these are not old players who have seen there best years. Look on the chart I made yesterday, Leroy is 25 years old.
Anybody wanna guess on who we franchise next year?? If anybody??
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDeleteAnybody wanna guess on who we franchise next year?? If anybody??
March 27, 2008 2:22 PM
Um.. Leonard Weaver?
michael steffes so I guess you're not a believer in the idea that you only invest so much money in one particular unit?
ReplyDeleteClearly if Hill were, say, a guard, we'd lock him up without a second thought.
I think the issue is that our LB corps will be very good with him and only pretty darn good without him. Seems to me like in this case the marginal cost outweighs the marginal benefit.
I say if they can't lock him up long term they will franchise him.
ReplyDeleteWeaver won't be that expensive to sign.
pretty sure the Weaver comment was a joke, though not a slam on Weaver.
ReplyDeleteBy next season, teams will also know if the owners are opting out of the collective bargaining agreement, which could affect any decisions about how and where to spend money.
ReplyDeleteSteffes,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree, he's a text book case of building from the draft, and we've already done a good job of building from the draft and supplanting young talent with good FA signings, but once these guys play through their rookie contracts, it's tough to keep them all, sometimes you have to pick and choose.
We chose Lofa and Trufant, along with some quality FAs. Unfortunately I think Hill's the odd man out. Some of the contracts we've just signed will start to get a bit brutal in the coming years, but maybe Ruskell can shift some things around and make it happen.
And I enjoyed your charting of the defensive personnel yesterday. We're going to have a dominant defense for years to come. I love it.
Let's see Briggs signed for 6/$36M. Sure seems like we should be able to get Hill signed this year somewhere around 6/$30M ($10-12M guaranteed) or 5/$22-25M with a little less guaranteed than the longer deal.
ReplyDeleteNWN
JP's cap becomes enormous in the last years of his contract. At the same time his age will begin to show. Look for him to be gone or renegotiated by 2010 or 11. So it would be foolish to let Hill walk. TR will franchise him for at least 1 year. Remember that cap is going up every year, Walt may be gone by 2011 freeing up some money. both safeties will be replaced by then freeing up more, Kerney will likely be gone as will Benard. We can afford some linebackers. TR is building a young and initially inexpensive team. Look at what he's done this year in what looked like a bottleneck year. Just take a step back and look at what this guy is is building. a masterpiece, the golden age of seahawkdom.
ReplyDeletetony
Stallz... I am picking up what you are putting down big fella.
ReplyDeleteIt would seem at least they will let Leroy get through this season and determine if they have someone who can step in, who is going, who is staying, etc before making the decision.
I do like the idea of tagging him too. I think that LB was fairly reasonable this year, around 7 mil.
Yes the Weaver comment was an attempt at humor, apparently a feeble attempt..
ReplyDeleteAs for Hill, signing him might be as simple as giving him a big signing bonus this year to wipe out his current pay (down to vet minimum) give him a second bonus payment around March 1st/2nd next season, initailly as a roster bonus. Fitting Hill isnt the issue, the issue becomes does he want to be the "top banana" even if for less money elsewhere, rather than be kinda the 3rd leg here, even if he is making as much or more money than top banana's everywhere. I kinda think that this is what happened with Hutch, he simply didnt want to go on being "the guy being overpayed to play next to Walter Jones (bow down genuflect)" Even though he might not have been treated that way HERE. Sometimes getting into people's heads isn't as simple as it seems. Joe J. took less money to play at "home", it happens.
Gotta keep Hill, Peterson will not be around playing at a high level forever. If we end up with lofa and two draft picks at LB, we will probably be missing the golden years that we are in now.
ReplyDeletenot for nothing, but I don't think Hill is third leg/banana/fiddle/ what have you-- I think he is very much tied with Peterson for second, in the minds of knowledgeable 'hawk fans at least.
ReplyDeleteI agree shams....on the field equal talent different style of play. Off the field Lofa and JP get alot more camera / tv time / media attention. Hill is the equivalent of the attention the hawks get across the country. Great successful organization in recent years, but continue to fly under the radar.
ReplyDeleteIt will be interesting to see how both Hill and Peterson are used this year. My guess is that JP rushes the passer a lot more than Hill. Not that Leroy isn't a good rusher. Sacks translate to dollars.
ReplyDeleteLance Briggs got $6 mil a year after going to 3 consecutive pro-bowls. Hill is great, but unless he makes a big name for himself outside of the Northwest, I'm not sure he will have enough leverage to demand that kind of money. He has also had trouble staying healthy for a whole season, and other teams might be a little weary of that. I'm not going to speculate on the actual contract numbers, but I think there is a good chance that the Hawks can afford to keep him, even with the money already invested at the other LB positions.
ReplyDeleteOf course, if he plays 16 games and goes to the pro-bowl in '08, that might be a different story.
-Tom
All the more reason to try and lock him up now!!!! That and I am going to be PISSSED if he leaves! I love my Hill 56 Jersey!!!! What ever will I do???
ReplyDeleteAlso, did anybody else notice that the ticker went under 30 days this morning!!!!!! Boooyah!! Less than a month till draft day! Whose with me?
ReplyDeleteI agree. The Ruskell Defense in Tampa Bay was successful for so long because the core players were together for that long. If TR is trying to use that blueprint he must lock up Hill.
ReplyDeleteExactly! Now is the time to resign Hill, before he really makes a name for himself. This guy is solid, and he's probably only going to get better.
ReplyDelete-Tom
I'm with ya! I can't wait until the draft! The anticipation is too much, I'm going crazy.
ReplyDelete-Tom
My humble opinion is that Leroy Hill is more important than keeping Peterson around. peterson is older, and relies on speed. Hill is a better run stuffer, and can blitz damn near as well as peterson. Once peterson starts losing his speed with age, Leroy will be the better blitzer. Leroy also will still be valuable when he gets older as he can really hit. Leroy is a better all-around player, even now. Peterson disappeared some weeks, while Hill got tackles week in week out.
ReplyDeleteI would vote to pay the man, and renegotiate Peterson if need be. it would be nice to keep them all around for another 2-3 years.
-SlaveToTheBusinessman
ps i hear more appreciation by national media and coaches/players for Hill than I do for Peterson. Im just saying...
ReplyDeleteHill is a different story that Lofa. You wait till next year, see how he does and pay him what you think he deserves. If he thinks he can get more, leverage him with the franchise tag. I bet Leroy situation will look allot like the Tru scenario. I love Leroy, he is a beast and is definitely the least talked about force on the Hawks.
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that if the FO thought that Hill would be hard to resign, they might have worked harder to keep Bentley. He didn't sign for that much money with Houston.
ReplyDeleteBut then again, you find one good LB in the draft, who can play right away, you can always find others.
But then again, you find one good LB in the draft, who can play right away, you can always find others.
ReplyDeleteIf Leroy Hills were so easy to find, there'd be more of them on NFL rosters.
I have the feeling that FA's are looking forward to playing for Holmgren/Mora Jr. Also, can you imagine the excitement of spending the off season working out at a state-of-the-art (funded by Allen) facility on the banks of Lake Washington? I bet Ruskell negotiates knowing these guys will be drooling at the opportunity to play for a winner, live in the NW and play before a fan base that love their Hawks!
ReplyDeleteI still think we need a TE early in the draft to take the pressure off our young WR's and Matt.
One oversight with sizing up Hill and Peterson: JP is at least decent in coverage vs. TEs and RBs in space. Those talents are unproven in Hill.
ReplyDeleteremember how much (or how little) the top weakside LB's made and were offered this offseason. Briggs went scurrying back to the bears after testing a less than stellar weakside LB market. Hill is valuable in our scheme and the hawks will prob wait til later in the yr. to evaluate his performance again since theres no more pressure w/ lofa and trufant.
ReplyDeleteRM8