The Seattle Seahawks and safety Kam Chancellor have rarely been on the same page this past year. Chancellor, a four-time Pro Bowler since being drafted in the fifth round back in 2010, is unhappy with the four-year, $28 million extension he signed in 2013. In fact, he even held out this summer and missed regular season games this year in an effort to get a new deal. But Seattle general manager John Schneider refused to give in, especially with expensive contracts for Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas and Bobby Wagner on the books already. Chancellor ultimately swallowed his pride and returned to the team, but his belief that he has outplayed his current contract remains.
With just one more year on his deal, will Chancellor hold out again? Will the Seahawks be forced to trade him? ESPN's Sheil Kapadia tackled this topic while making predictions for Seattle's 2016 offseason.
"The team and strong safety Kam Chancellor will find a middle ground that works for both sides on a contract extension," Kapadia wrote. "Chancellor held out last summer and missed the first two games of the season because he was unhappy with his contract. Pete Carroll does not want to deal with for the second straight year, but to this point, no adjustments have been made to Chancellor's deal. The Seahawks know their Super Bowl window is open, and they need Chancellor. They'll find a way to make him happy so that Chancellor is fully-invested going into 2016."
Chancellor, 27, remains one of the better safeties in the NFL. In 11 games this year he racked up 74 total tackles with one forced fumble and two interceptions. He has 10 picks in his career. Though it takes more than one player to make a defense, it's worth noting that the Seahawks allowed an average of 30.5 points and 356.5 yards in the two games Chancellor missed during his holdout. Very few teams in the NFL have a guy like Chancellor, a hard hitting safety who plays up in the box like a linebacker, on their roster.
Seattle knows how valuable Chancellor is and how much he contributes to their success. Maybe Kapadia is being optimistic, but it would behoove the Seahawks to reach some sort of agreement with Chancellor while they still can.
