Kam Chancellor’s holdout raises questions
Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor’s holdout shows no end in sight, with both sides sticking to their positions.
The holdout elicits daily questions from readers about its origin, context and what may happen. So here’s our attempt to answer some of the more frequently-asked questions:
Question: Why is Chancellor holding out?
Answer: As is always the case in these things, the answer is one word – money. Chancellor signed a four-year extension in April 2013 worth $28 million, carrying him through the 2017 season.
What appears to be one of the main sticking points for Chancellor is that he has earned all of the guaranteed money in his contract (or would if he plays this season) and that his cap number rises markedly the next two years (to $6.1 million in 2016 and $8.1 million in 2017). The amount of cap hit the Seahawks would take for cutting him decreases (to $2 million in 2016 and $1 million in 2017). In essence, the team could fairly easily release him after this season if it desired, something the Seahawks have done with players such as Red Bryant and Chris Clemons.
Chancellor, according to various reports, would at least like the team to guarantee some of his future base salaries, apparently as a hedge against being released and to give him security beyond this season. Now 27, Chancellor missed two games last season because of a groin injury and also suffered a knee injury before the Super Bowl that he played through.
Q: Why won’t the Seahawks redo Chancellor’s contract?
A: The Seahawks have a policy of not redoing contracts that have more than a year remaining, and they don’t want to set a precedent by doing something to Chancellor’s deal. Other players then could ask for something similar. This was at the heart of running back Marshawn Lynch’s holdout from training camp last year. Lynch missed eight days before returning. Lynch came back after agreeing to take a deal in which an additional $1.5 million already in his contract was guaranteed. However, that offer reportedly already had been on the table before his holdout, so the team does not view that as something gained by holding out.
Q: What can the team fine Chancellor for holding out?
A: The NFL’s collective-bargaining agreement allows teams to fine players up to $30,000 per day for holding out. Teams can recoup up to 25 percent of a player’s pro-rated signing bonus. Chancellor’s bonus was $1 million, so the team can recoup $250,000 now. If Chancellor holds out the first week of the regular season, that would trigger another 25 percent forfeiture. From that point no more forfeiture occurs until Week 5, at which point he forfeits an equal amount each week. If Chancellor misses regular-season games, he then could be fined one-seventeenth of his base salary each week (roughly $267,000).
Q: What are the salary-cap ramifications if Chancellor holds out into the regular season for the team and himself?
A: Once he reports his cap charge will reflect whatever is owed for the balance of the year rather than his $4.55 million salary. So if he misses six weeks his cap charge would only count $2.94 million of his base salary rather than the $4.55 million.
So those savings are realized this season.
If Chancellor does not report by Week 10, then this season would not count toward him accruing free agency and he would still be under contract for three years.