We’re two weeks into the 2015 NFL season and the Seattle Seahawks have the 29th ranked defense in the league.
Just let that sink in.
The Seahawks have been No. 1 overall each of the past three seasons, so needless to say Kam Chancellor’s holdout is really affecting the Legion of Boom. They look more like the Legion of Gloom right now, amiright?…I’m sorry, I’ll stop.
But back to the topic: Chancellor has been holding out since training camp for a new contract. Word is the Seahawks and Chancellor are a little less than $1 million apart in their talks. So far, the holdout has cost Chancellor over $2 million in lost earnings. I guess it’s more about making a point than the money itself.
The worst part is, Chancellor and the Seahawks have supposedly lost contact over the past week. After a 0-2 start and poor defensive performances, you’d think the Hawks would be begging him to come back. Or you’d think Chancellor would have the decency to come back and stop making his teammates suffer without him on the field.
Personally, I blame Chancellor. His teammates definitely aren’t happy with him either:
“At this moment, he’s not battling with us,” said safety Earl Thomas when asked about Chancellor’s absence on the field. “So I can’t really tell you what [it means]. It would be great if he comes back, but we’re gonna keep on truckin’…He’s handling his situations, [instead of] helping us. I try not to deal with that energy.”
Cliff Avril had similar words regarding Chancellor. The consensus is that they really want him back, but they also should be able to do better without him.
Michael Bennett had a slightly different reaction:
“My situation is different than his,” said the Seahawks’ defensive lineman. “I’ve got three kids. I’ve got a wife. My wife wouldn’t let me hold out, so I had to come to work.”
Guess he isn’t very happy with his contract either, but Mrs. Bennett isn’t having any of that.
Marshawn Lynch was also asked about the situation, to which he responded simply “Yeah.”
UPDATE:
Kam Chancellor is finally going to end his contract holdout and return to the Seahawks on Wednesday. After missing training camp along with the first two games of the 2015 NFL season in hopes of having his contract restructured, he realized he needed to get back on the field and let business take care of itself.
“Ima go help my teammates that are understanding of my position and the ones who aren’t,” Chancellor said in the text message. “God forgives all, why can’t i? Time to help us get back to the big dance. I can address business after the season. Me and Marshawn started a mission 2 years ago. I can’t let my Dawg down….Real talk.”
In holding out, he’s given up two game checks worth over $267K, and it hasn’t been resolved whether the Seahawks will waive his fines for skipping out on training camp. Chancellor is under contract through 2017.