Re-centered? Justin Britt rockin’ out in Seahawks’ facility in return from knee surgery
Justin Britt is rockin’ out on his way back to the field.
“You know, my office is right above the weight room (at Seahawks headquarters), so I heard him in there the other day throwing weights around and listening to Metallica, or whatever he was listening to in there,” Seahawks general manager John Schneider said this week at the NFL scouting combine.
“He’s doing a great job.”
(Re)Enter Center Man?
Britt is four months into a long road back from reconstructive knee surgery. He hasn’t played since October when he tore ligaments in his knee early in Seattle’s win at Atlanta.
He turns 29 in May. He is the longest-tenured starter on the Seahawks’ offensive line. He’s been there since Seattle drafted him in the second round in 2014. He was the team’s starting right tackle in its Super Bowl season, his rookie year of 2014. He struggled, so Seattle and former line coach Tom Cable moved him to guard for 2015.
When that didn’t go great, either, and after the Seahawks traded Pro Bowl center Max Unger to New Orleans for tight end Jimmy Graham in the spring of 2015, Britt became Russell Wilson’s center. He’s excelled there as a snapper and blocking anchor. He was Pro Bowl alternate in 2018, his last full season.
Yet his return to the Seahawks’ starting line in 2020 is no sure thing, and not just because of his major knee surgery.
Coach Pete Carroll said after Seattle’s playoff loss at Green Bay in January he wanted to be the starting offensive line from last season together for this coming one.
But right tackle Germain Ifedi’s contract ended; he is poised to become an unrestricted free agent in three weeks. So is tackle George Fant, who has been effective as an extra, blocking tight end in the running game the last two seasons.
Mike Iupati, the starting left guard in 2019, is also a free agent after one season with Seattle. He had a nerve issue in his neck late last season. He turns 33 in May. He is iffy at best to return.
It was noticeable Tuesday that Schneider, unprompted, brought up two other options at center for 2020 when I asked him about Britt’s recovery.
“That’s an unfortunate thing for him, you know. But Joey (Hunt) came in and played real well,” the GM said of Britt’s replacement at center the latter half of last season. “And (Ethan) Pocic can play there, as well.”
Hunt was Seattle’s sixth-round pick in 2016. He’s been Britt’s backup throughout his career so far. Hunt is a restricted free agent. If the Seahawks make a qualifying offer to him within the next few weeks, they have the right to match any other offer Hunt might get. If they don’t tender Hunt, he becomes an unrestricted free agent next month.
Britt’s three-year, $27 million contract extension he signed in August 2017 ends after the 2020 season, thanks to the team picking up his option for next year in the spring of 2018. Like most veteran extensions, the salary-cap charges for his extension years balloon in the final years, back-loaded to be more cap friendly up front at the start of the deal.
Those signs are lessening they will do it, the Seahawks could save $8.75 million against the 2020 salary cap by releasing him. Britt’s $11.67 million cap charge is scheduled to be the fourth-highest on the team in 2020. That’s behind only franchise pillars Wilson and Bobby Wagner then Pro Bowl left tackle Duane Brown and ahead of top wide receiver Tyler Lockett.
That’s a hefty chunk of the team’s salary cap to a veteran who will be 29 and maybe not on the field until September or October, after next season begins. Recoveries from reconstructive knee surgeries generally take 12 months or so. And players usually don’t come back from those surgeries immediately as the same performers they were prior to the injury. Not right away.
It’s the same situation the Seahawks had with Richard Sherman following his torn Achilles in Nov. 2017. Rather than absorb his $11 salary-cap charge for 2018 as he returned for an injury as major as Britt’s, Seattle released its All-Pro cornerback and previous team cornerstone in the spring of ‘18, weeks before his 30th birthday.
Sherman just finished his second season playing for NFC West-rival San Francisco. He played for the 49ers in this month’s Super Bowl.
Britt could agree to renegotiate his 2020 salary to make it more cap friendly for the team. He could also reach an injury settlement of a cash payment if the team were to release him while still unfit to play. That latter scenario looks less likely now than it did when Britt got hurt.
The Seahawks are in a better cap situation than in many offseason. They have n estimated $44.7 million of space under the estimated 2020 cap, according to overthecap.com, following the signing of tight end Greg Olsen to a one-year free-agent contract last week.
And, again, Carroll wants to keep as much of the offensive line together as he can. Britt is a key member of it. He’s a veteran of calling blocking audibles and synchronizing with Wilson on reading defensive fronts and blitzes just before the snap. He’s the best Seattle has at doing that.
“He looks real good,” Carroll said Tuesday. “I’ve seen him a number of times coming through the building, and all. His attitude and...I know I’m hearing of the work ethic he’s putting forth is exactly what we would hope for right now.
“He is doing great. He is going to come roaring back from this surgery.”
