Seahawks sign Jones to seven-year deal

Big contract settled, Seattle offensive tackle Walter Jones said he won't miss training camp in Cheney this season. (File/Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Tim Booth Associated Press

SEATTLE – All-Pro offensive tackle Walter Jones may have brought some stability to the Seattle Seahawks’ turbulent off-season by signing a seven-year deal Wednesday.

The team still lacks a president and has a number of key unsigned free agents, but Jones’ contract, worth more than $50 million, keeps a potential marquee free agent off the market.

“It’s a great feeling,” said Jones, 31, who could have become an unrestricted free agent on March 2. “I kind of have a feeling now of where my career is going to end.”

Jones played the last three seasons under a series of one-year contracts as Seattle’s franchise player.

Jones’ agent, Roosevelt Barnes, would not provide specific figures, but said the contract includes a signing bonus of more than $15 million and total bonuses of more than $20 million.

The Seahawks have used their franchise player designation on Jones since 2002, keeping him in a series of one-year contracts that paid him the average of the NFL’s highest-paid offensive tackles. Jones made $7.1 million last season.

As a sign of his displeasure at the short-term deals, Jones skipped most of the last four training camps at Eastern Washington University in Cheney. Last season, Jones did not report until a week before the season opener and spent the summer working out at home in Huntsville, Ala., doing what he believed he would have been doing at training camp: physical condition, lifting weights, and drills.

So will the camp-skipping come to an end?

“I’m definitely going to be in Cheney,” Jones said.

Thank you for visiting Spokesman.com. To continue reading this story and enjoying our local journalism please subscribe or log in.

You have reached your article limit for this month.

Subscribe now and enjoy unlimited digital access to Spokesman.com

Unlimited Digital Access

Stay connected to Spokane for as little as 99¢!

Subscribe for access

Already a Spokesman-Review subscriber? Activate or Log in

You have reached your article limit for this month.

Subscribe now and enjoy unlimited digital access to Spokesman.com

Unlimited Digital Access

Stay connected to Spokane for as little as 99¢!

Subscribe for access

Already a Spokesman-Review subscriber? Activate or Log in

Oops, it appears there has been a technical problem. To access this content as intended, please try reloading the page or returning at a later time. Already a Spokesman-Review subscriber? Activate or Log in