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Extension Watch
Henderson’s Notebook Drops: Witherspoon Is Present, Extension Is Not, and Bradford Might Keep His Job
ESPN’s Brady Henderson published his offseason notebook Friday, and the Witherspoon section reads like a negotiation that hasn’t started moving yet. JSN’s record $168.6 million deal came together so fast they didn’t even have time to leak it. Witherspoon’s is the other kind of deal: two sides who know each other’s cards, neither wanting to blink first, both waiting for someone else to set the market.
Witherspoon has been at the VMAC for virtually every voluntary workout since April 20, despite Macdonald telling veterans they could skip Phase 1. He showed up anyway. So did Derick Hall and Jarran Reed. The culture isn’t a question anymore. The contract is.
Henderson confirmed what Albert Breer and Adam Schefter have both predicted: a deal before or during training camp. But the Trent McDuffie extension ($31M/yr) complicates things, because Witherspoon’s résumé is stronger. Three straight Pro Bowls. A sack and a forced fumble in the Super Bowl. He should have been the game’s MVP. The number will start above $31 million and climb from there.
$31M/yr
Trent McDuffie’s new deal with the Rams — the number Witherspoon’s camp is working above.
Elsewhere in the notebook: right guard Anthony Bradford trained with O-line guru Duke Manyweather after the Super Bowl. The word from inside the VMAC is he came back in good shape. Rookie Beau Stephens will push for the starting job, but Bradford still looks like the favorite. And backup center Olu Oluwatimi remains a potential trade chip, entering the final year of his deal behind starter Jalen Sundell.
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League Intel
Myles Garrett Still Hasn’t Met His New Head Coach. The Door Remains Cracked.
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Cleveland insider Tony Grossi flagged Seattle as one of three possible destinations alongside Philadelphia and San Francisco. Schneider already made the call once. Cleveland said no. The contract modification didn’t change that answer, but it changed the math. Mandatory minicamp starts June 9. If Garrett shows up talking about championships in Cleveland, the speculation dies. If he doesn’t, it accelerates into something real.
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Need and want live in different zip codes when you’re talking about a guy with 23 sacks and a no-trade clause.
The Seahawks have Fowler, Hall, Nwosu, and Lawrence. They don’t need Garrett. But need and want live in different zip codes.
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AROUND THE COOP
Around the Coop
DeMarcus Lawrence is the one notable absence from VMAC photo galleries this spring. His wife gave birth to their sixth child right after the Super Bowl. Macdonald says he’s playing. Six kids and a Super Bowl ring is a pretty good February. ESPN ESPN
Schneider “came highly recommended” by CBS’s Jonathan Jones in reference to Teasley’s Vikings candidacy. If Teasley lands the gig, Seattle gets third-round comp picks in 2027 and 2028. Losing your right hand but gaining draft capital is the Schneider way. Heavy Heavy
OTAs begin Monday. Guard and receiver depth are the only real competitions. Every player who logged 700-plus snaps last season is back. Defending a title with continuity is boring. Boring wins rings. Emerald City Spectrum Emerald City Spectrum
The Rams are the current betting favorite to win the Super Bowl, per FOX Sports. They lost the NFC Championship to Seattle four months ago. Vegas has a short memory when a team has an MVP quarterback and $55 million in new reasons to believe. FOX Sports FOX Sports
NFC WEST SCHADENFREUDE REPORT
RAMS
Stafford’s $55 million extension is signed, and now the Rams have to figure out how to pay everyone else with money they don’t have. Rambling Fan laid out the math: paying Nacua at $43M AAV pushes the Rams’ cash spending to “20% above the NFL salary cap.” Kobie Turner, Byron Young, and Steve Avila are all extension-eligible with no fifth-year options. FOX Sports’ Eric Williams projected the Rams at 9-8 and noted Stafford is 38 years old and one play away from starting a rookie who has never taken an NFL snap. The championship window is open. The checkbook is sweating.
NINERS
San Francisco opens in Melbourne, flies to Mexico City in Week 11, and will travel a league-record 38,100 miles this season. Their big offseason receiver acquisition was Mike Evans, who turns 33 in August. They drafted a pass rusher with the shortest arms at the combine. NFL.com projects them as a No. 6 seed. The 49ers are building a roster that would have been very scary in 2023, which is unfortunately three years ago.
CARDINALS
Arizona spent $54 million on the third overall pick and put him on kickoff return duty during OTAs. LaFleur’s explanation to local radio was a masterpiece of noncommitment: “Jeremiyah is a running back. We know that. But you never know.” Meanwhile Brissett is still absent, Minshew is running with the ones, and the two sides are reportedly “significantly” far apart on a new deal. NFL.com’s game-by-game projections have Arizona losing its first nine games. Neither analyst gave them a single road win all season.
SEACHICKENS TRIVIA
Steve Raible was drafted by the Seahawks in their inaugural 1976 draft and later became the franchise’s radio play-by-play voice. How many career receptions did Raible record during his six NFL seasons as a Seahawks wide receiver?
Tap to Reveal the Answer
68. Raible caught 68 passes for 1,017 yards and four touchdowns from 1976 to 1981, all with Seattle. He then transitioned to broadcasting and has been associated with the franchise in every year of its existence, making him arguably the longest-tenured person in Seahawks history.
Got a question for The Rooster?
OTAs start Monday. The Witherspoon watch continues. The Garrett door is cracked. Ask me anything about this team and I’ll answer it with the appropriate level of emotional investment. Hit reply or use the form below.
Three days until OTAs. The VMAC is full. The contract drawer is not. The trophy doesn't care about either. Go Hawks. — The Rooster