Seahawks’ Wilson may benefit from Newton’s big deal

RENTON, Wash. – In his first meeting with Seattle-area reporters since two days after the Super Bowl, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson said Tuesday that he is prepared to play the 2015 season without a new contract. But Wilson also reiterated several times during the 16-minute session that his hope remains that he and his agent, Mark Rodgers, can work out a long-term deal with the Seahawks. Wilson has one year remaining on his rookie contract that will pay him $1.5 million in 2015. “I’m prepared for that 100 percent, if that’s the case,” Wilson said when asked about playing the 2015 season without a new deal. “You know, I want to be here for a long time. But if that’s the case (that he does not have an extension) I’ve just got to get ready to play. I love the game, and I love being out here with these guys and just playing. And so ultimately I just take it one day at a time and just see where it takes me.” Shortly before Wilson spoke, though, the Carolina Panthers and quarterback Cam Newton finalized a new deal that could make it a little more expensive for the Seahawks to extend Wilson’s contract. Newton signed a five-year deal worth $103.8 million that was said to include $60 million in guarantees and $67.6 million in the first three years of the contract. Newton is receiving an average of $20.8 million in the five years of the extension, which according to NFL.com ties him with Atlanta’s Matt Ryan as the NFL’s third-highest paid player on a per-year basis behind Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers ($22 million) and Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger ($21.6 million). Contracts include many details that can dilute the impact of the basic numbers, and just how much Newton’s deal would impact Seattle’s negotiations is a matter of debate. One consensus is that it at least establishes a floor for the Seahawks’ negotiations with Wilson – the thinking being there’s no way Wilson would get less – and that it could create more urgency for the team to get something done. Though the Seahawks are known to have made an initial offer to Wilson, it was thought to be far below what Newton received and considered largely a starting point for negotiations. Newton’s deal came a few weeks after Miami’s Ryan Tannehill agreed to a four-year extension averaging $19.25 million per season. Indianapolis’ Andrew Luck, taken with the first pick in the 2012 draft, also is eligible for an extension, and veterans Eli Manning and Philip Rivers are in line for new deals. Jason Fitzgerald of the website OvertheCap.com, which analyzes NFL salaries, said Newton’s contract will provide “a logical comparison” for Wilson, but with Wilson undoubtedly angling for something more. “I think the contract for Newton certainly strengthens the case for Wilson, though it wasn’t really a big surprise,” Fitzgerald said. “Once Ryan Tannehill signed his extension, I think it was pretty obvious that this is in the realm of what Newton would receive. “It’s probably in Seattle’s best interest to get a contract done before Andrew Luck or Manning/Rivers get new contracts. The market is only increasing, and Wilson can make a case to surpass any one of those players or be slightly under them.” Fitzgerald wrote on his website that he would anticipate Wilson and Luck possibly asking for as much as $23 million a year and that “both the Seahawks and Colts, in my estimation, made mistakes by not getting deals done early and setting the market.” Wilson was not interested in discussing numbers or any details related to the negotiations. Asked at one point if getting $20 million a year is a goal, Wilson said “it’s a private matter. I’m not going to talk money.” That he said he is prepared to play the 2015 season without a new contract, though, jibes with what Rodgers said last week in a radio interview. Rodgers noted that if the sides do not come to an agreement, the Seahawks could put an Exclusive Rights Franchise Tag on Wilson for the 2016 season, which by some estimates would pay him at least $23 million. That led Rodgers to conclude that “there really are no deadlines” and that Wilson would be “absolutely fine” playing 2015 without a new contract. Still, many anticipate that things are likely to heat up around the time the Seahawks will begin training camp in late July. Wilson said that whatever happens, he has faith it’ll turn out well, in the same manner in which he rose from being a much-questioned third-round draft pick to a Super Bowl champion in just two years. “No matter where I go, I always believe that it’s going to work out, no matter what the situation is,” Wilson said. “And I hope that it’s here. And I hope that it’s here for a long time and hopefully I get to wear the Seahawks blue in No. 3 for a long time. But we’ll see what happens.”