Franchised Frank

[Hawk Sista]

Not that we didn’t know it was coming.... but now we really know.

I found it interesting that the last time we used the F-Tag was for Olindo Mare.

[burrrton]

Good to know, Sis- thanks.

Nice to know he'll be with the team next year, I just hope this is a move he's OK with.

[obiken]

I dont know HS, maybe Cbob and River will have a different take, but 17.5 for Clark, I cannot agree with this move.

[mykc14]

I dont know HS, maybe Cbob and River will have a different take, but 17.5 for Clark, I cannot agree with this move.

If you don’t like that you’re really not going to like it if we sign him to a long term contract that is in the 19 mil/yr range, because that is what he’s going to end up getting- if not here than somewhere.

[RiverDog]

I dont know HS, maybe Cbob and River will have a different take, but 17.5 for Clark, I cannot agree with this move.

If you don’t like that you’re really not going to like it if we sign him to a long term contract that is in the 19 mil/yr range, because that is what he’s going to end up getting- if not here than somewhere.

I don't like it when we start throwing that kind of money at safeties that are pushing 30 years old like we were talking about doing with Earl this time of year last season.

Clark has had no significant injuries, has improved each season he's been with us, and at 25 years old, he's just now hitting his prime. Next to quarterbacks, edge rushers are arguably the most valued position on the field. Tagging him is a no brainer.

[obiken]

I don't like it when we start throwing that kind of money at safeties that are pushing 30 years old like we were talking about doing with Earl this time of year last season.

Clark has had no significant injuries, has improved each season he's been with us, and at 25 years old, he's just now hitting his prime. Next to quarterbacks, edge rushers are arguably the most valued position on the field. Tagging him is a no brainer.

Ok River, if your in I get it, but that is a lot of money to throw at one player. We need blockers!

[RiverDog]

Ok River, if your in I get it, but that is a lot of money to throw at one player. We need blockers!

You say that every year, obi, yet last year, with a new coordinator and OL coach, we patched together one of the best OL's in the league. There's no reason, financial or otherwise, to believe that we won't have just as good of a unit as we had last season even if we don't get both Fluker and Sweezy back.

Each position has its own, independent market value, and defensive ends (Aaron Donald, Kahlil Mack) are second only to quarterbacks in terms of position money. You're going through sticker shock.

[NorthHawk]

The entire league is looking for pass rushers and someone who can also play the run is a valuable commodity.
Next to QB's it's the most desired position on the field. Just look at the contracts given out to the top DL.
Clark is nearing the top and is clearly the best on this team at pressure as well he's only going to get better.
With some help along the DL to take the attention from him, he could be even more effective. Let's hope
that Martin and Green take a big step up and maybe we get a draft pick that can compliment what we
already have. Pressure up front is what we need to help out the secondary.

[Rambo2014]

There goes the first of many. Depleted team coming up as I see it. Need to play your cards correctly and now the chickens are roosting. Frank Clark will not be a Seahawk, he will sit out for being disrespected and/or drop a poison pill and sign with a good team.

[c_hawkbob]

Hey Obi, I'm all in on Frank Clark. As Riv pointed out, he's playing at an elite level at an elite position and still very young. He's quite exactly the type of player the F-tag was designed to allow a team to retain in the first place. This is our best use of the tag since Walt (and no. I didn't just compare Clark to Walter Jones).

As for O-line, you know me, I'm all about the Hoss' up front, but again, as Riv points out, we were pretty solid there last year and look to be in at least reasonable shape going into this year. I trust Solari and while I'll still be hoping to see a lineman every time we make a pick in the draft, I'm much more comfortable in that regard than any time this decade.

[NorthHawk]

A number of writers have suggested there could be some good OL in the mid and mid-late rounds that could help us.
Solari seems to have a different requirement for the type of player that Cable had and we saw a vast improvement
in the run game as a result.

[idhawkman]

Good to know, Sis- thanks.

Nice to know he'll be with the team next year, I just hope this is a move he's OK with.

At 17.5 for a layer that kept getting passed over in the draft, he should be ok with it. We can't afford it but I'd like to get that free agent out of Dallas too.

[idhawkman]

I find it a bit troubling that we used the "non-exclusive franchise tag" on him and not the full franchise tag. Memories of Futch come to my mind... But then I got to thinking with the few picks we have this year, maybe we just want the picks for him.

[NorthHawk]

I wasn't sure what the difference was between the 2.
For others who are unsure about the Exclusive and Non-Exclusive Franchise Tags, here is an explanation.

https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/foot ... -1.2985100

"Non-exclusive franchise tag:
This is the most common use of the tag, and the one that Landry received from the Dolphins. It results in a one-year guaranteed contract offer from the club to the player for a set amount based on position.
Under the 2011 CBA it became slightly more complex. Now, the non-exclusive tag is calculated by adding the franchise tag cost together from the five previous seasons and dividing it by the sum of the salary caps from the five previous seasons to get a percentage-of-cap number that is then multiplied by that year's cap.

Got it? Actually, the non-exclusive franchise tag is worth either that number, or 120% of the player's salary from the year before, whichever is greater.
The long story short is that these are generally pricey one-year deals.
Players who receive the designation can sign their franchise tenders right away or shop for another team to try and get an offer sheet. If another team signs a franchise player to an offer sheet, the original team has a chance to match it. But if the original team doesn't match the offer, the new team must give up two first-round picks as compensation in order to steal the franchise player away.

Exclusive franchise tag:
The more uncommon tag still is used in some cases. The exclusive tag number is determined by the average of the five highest-paid players at the position. And that's based on this upcoming season, so the actual number won't be known until April when the Restricted Free Agent Signing Period ends because free agents this year could raise that average. Again, a 20% raise from that player's prior season salary becomes the franchise tag number if it is greater than the other calculation.
Unlike the non-exclusive tender, teams can't sign exclusive players to offer sheets. That doesn't necessarily mean someone can't be traded — he just can't be had via an offer sheet and two first-round picks."

[NorthHawk]

Apparently a few teams are sniffing around the Seahawks asking about the availability to trade for Clark.
Buffalo is the one that seems to be mentioned and they have multiple picks this year, but I think I would
demand a boat load and maybe even next years #1 from them for him. On the other hand, it would free
up a lot of Cap room for Wagner, Reed, and Wilson this, or next year.

[RiverDog]

Apparently a few teams are sniffing around the Seahawks asking about the availability to trade for Clark.
Buffalo is the one that seems to be mentioned and they have multiple picks this year, but I think I would
demand a boat load and maybe even next years #1 from them for him. On the other hand, it would free
up a lot of Cap room for Wagner, Reed, and Wilson this, or next year.

I've been hearing that we are very near reaching an agreement with Clark. Perhaps that's just smoke thrown out in negotiations to motivate Clark to sign.

[NorthHawk]

Or by his agent to lever more money from the Seahawks as the perception of others
wanting him push the price higher.

[Hawktawk]

I heard of a report although I haven't seen it in print that Clark's agent is just fine with the tag if that is how it goes. Its a boatload of money for one year and if he performs like he has which is better every year it will only drive his value higher next off-season.

[NorthHawk]

Clark is fine with the tag, too from what I read.
He would get about $35 million over 2 years or more guaranteed, so that is where the negotiations begin.
If he does sign, I would expect to see a contract of 4 years with $50 million guaranteed. Maybe more.

[RiverDog]

Here's the rumor that North Hawk referred to:

https://www.12up.com/posts/6315053-repo ... 13ENuGyMKA

It doesn't say what the Bills might be willing to offer, but since Kahlil Mack netted two first round picks out of the Bears, you'd think that Clark should be able to fetch a 1st and a 2nd. The Bills own the #9 overall in this year's draft.

[NorthHawk]

A new report says Frank won't go to TC without a new contract:

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... -new-deal/

https://www.profootballrumors.com/2019/ ... -extension

[Hawktawk]

It’s truly gotten ridiculous . 17 million for one year and no way Jose. it does sound like he will show up for the check when the season starts though. He’s apparently forgotten Seattle took a chance on him with his character issues. It really is just getting ridiculous with these pro athletes .

[RiverDog]

Something doesn't add up. Just before we tagged him, reports were that we were close to a long term deal. Both these rumors can't be true. Things don't go south that quickly.

Let's wait until Clark has to report before we start tossing him under the bus. Even if the reports have some merit, a lot of stuff gets tossed around during negotiations and this could be nothing but a bunch of posturing. It would be a stupid move by Clark not to sign the tag as he'd be forfeiting a huge payday. He's not going to come out ahead. Just take a look at Le'Veon Bell's situation.

[mykc14]

It’s going to be an interesting negotiation. His agent says he is happy playing on the F-Tag this year, but if he’s demanding a 20 mil/year contract then the Hawks are also probably happy with him playing on that 1 year contract. I think they would certainly like to have him locked up because we have some big names in the last year of their contracts and we probably don’t want to be looking at Clark, Reed, RW, and Wagner as potential free agents next year, but if his price is in the 20 plus mil/year range what does it hurt them to wait? He is a very good DE, but he’s certainly not a top 10 defender in the league. In the end I see him staying here and getting less than 20 mil average.

[NorthHawk]

Vic Carucci is now saying the Bills have no interest in acquiring Clark.

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... ank-clark/

[RiverDog]

Vic Carucci is now saying the Bills have no interest in acquiring Clark.

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... ank-clark/

Bottom line is that we can't trust any of these rumors as they seem to be changing by the minute.

I agree with mykc. Clark is an excellent edge rusher and deserves to be paid, but he's not an unblockable monster like Aaron Donald or JJ Watt that's going to force defenses to game plan around him.

[NorthHawk]

Yah, everyone is getting their smoke blowing technique in order at this time of year.
A number of things might have transpired, such as they didn't want to give up the
picks we wanted or Clark said he wasn't going to sign with Buffalo, or maybe there
really wasn't any interest from them.

[RiverDog]

Yah, everyone is getting their smoke blowing technique in order at this time of year.
A number of things might have transpired, such as they didn't want to give up the
picks we wanted or Clark said he wasn't going to sign with Buffalo, or maybe there
really wasn't any interest from them.

What was it that Mike Holmgren said about this time of year? Everyone lies? Perhaps Buffalo started the rumors and is trying to drive up the market price for their #9 overall.

In any event, we all need to back away from the ledge.

[RiverDog]

With Russell's self imposed April 15th deadline and associated rumors, we've kinda forgotten about Frank Clark.

Rumor has it that if Clark doesn't show up tomorrow, we'll be trading him before/during the draft.

[jshawaii22]

interesting that he basically has a "no-trade" clause as we can't trade him without him signing the Franchise tender. He can hold up any trade or demand it to be to any number of teams he chooses. I'm sure it would include a 'window' to negotiate a new contract. The other question then begs: is it to sign Russell to that mega-mega contract he wants.