Seahawks bringing back Mike Iupati thickens plot for Justin Britt; Malik Turner released
The Seahawks are bringing back Mike Iupati.
And the Justin Britt plot thickens.
Seattle and Iupati have an agreement on a contract for the team’s starting left guard from 2019 to return in 2020. The deal for Iupati, a 10-year veteran who turns 33 next month, was first reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero Tuesday.
Iupati played all 16 games last regular season, the first time he’d done that since 2012 when he was with San Francisco. He played through a foot injury and nerve issue in his neck before he missed both of Seattle’s playoff games in January.
The Seahawks signed B.J. Finney as a veteran free agent last month from Pittsburgh. He has started games at left guard, right guard and center in the NFL. Finney started two games at center for the Steelers last season.
Finney signed a two-year, $8 million contract with Seattle last month. He has a $3.5 million salary-cap charge for this year. At that cost, he’s playing in 2020.
But where?
D.J. Fluker, the Seahawks’ starting right guard the last two season, is entering the final year of his contract. He has not played a full season relatively healthy since 2016 when he was with the Chargers. He missed six games in his first year with the Seahawks, 2018, and was out two games last season. Fluker, hugely popular around the team, turned 29 last month. He has a $4.2 million salary-cap charge this year and Seattle could save $3.7 million if it released him.
Britt is coming off reconstructive knee surgery from a season-ending injury in October. He turns 29 next month. His contract and health make him a candidate to be released.
His cap charge for 2020 is $11.4 million. That’s the fifth-highest cap number on the Seahawks, behind Russell Wilson, Bobby Wagner, Duane Brown and Tyler Lockett, and ahead of K.J. Wright ($10 million cap charge, with bonuses) and recently re-signed Jarran Reed ($9.35 million). Britt base salary for 2020, the final year of his contract, is $8.25 million. The Seahawks could save $8.5 million if they released Britt.
They would only do that if they are convinced Finney or Joey Hunt, Britt’s backup the last few years who replaced him for the final 2 1/2 months of last season, are ready to take over as the new starting center this year. Or, if they believe Britt will remained sidelined well into the 2020 season recovering from his major knee surgery.
In addition to Hunt ($2.13 million for 2020) the Seahawks have reserve Ethan Pocic. He played center at LSU. Seattle has been using him as a reserve guard and tackle since it drafted Pocic in the second round in 2017.
General manager John Schneider said at the NFL combine in late February he’d been impressed with how Britt had been “doing a great job” working in the team’s training room in his recovery. But the Seahawks aren’t yet sure when Britt could be back on a field.
“That’s an unfortunate thing for him, you know,” Schneider said of Britt’s injury.
Then the GM added: “But Joey came in and played real well. And Pocic can play there, as well.”
Schneider said that before he signed Finney.
Bringing back Iupati puts Seattle even further out of the market for an interior offensive lineman in the draft April 23-25.
But an offensive tackle remains a strong possibility. Brown, the starting left tackle, is 35. He had knee surgery in December. His contract ends after 2021. Germain Ifedi was the Seahawks’ starting right tackle the last three years. He left in free agency to sign a one-year deal with Chicago. George Fant, one of Ifedi’s backups at tackle, signed as a free agent for $10 million per year for three seasons with the New York Jets.
The Seahawks signed Brandon Shell last month to a two-year, $9 million contract to be the new right tackle. They also signed free-agent tackle Cedric Ogbuehi, a former first-round pick by Cincinnati.
Malik Turner let go
The official NFL transactions for Tuesday showed the Seahawks pulled their tender offer to exclusive rights free agent Malik Turner. That makes the wide receiver who emerged the last two seasons as a target for Russell Wilson before dropping a key pass late in Seattle’s playoff loss at Green Bay in January an unrestricted free agent.
Setting Turner free could indicate the Seahawks are shopping in one of the deepest talent pools for wide receivers in many, many drafts.
This story was originally published April 14, 2020 at 4:21 PM.
