Seahawks, Avril finalize deal

Seattle has established itself as a destination in today’s NFL. That is the lesson to be drawn from this week’s free-agent additions, a two-man coup at defensive end as Seattle signed Cliff Avril of Detroit to a two-year contract Thursday and then reached an agreement with Michael Bennett of Tampa Bay on a one-year deal. These were two of the top pass-rushers on the market, a pair of players who had nine sacks apiece in 2012. After the market for pass-rushers proved less lucrative than expected, those two players took a look at their respective options and decided to take short-term deals with a rising contender in Seattle that plays its home games in a cauldron of decibels that is a defensive player’s dream. – Seattle Times