Will Seahawks Take Advantage of Jaguars Fire Sale?

Just two years removed from nearly reaching the Super Bowl, Jacksonville has its sights set on tearing down the roster by unloading expensive veterans for draft assets. Could Seattle have interest in exploring a trade?

Back on January 21, 2018, holding a fourth quarter lead over the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, the Jaguars found themselves on the verge of making history.

After entering the league as an expansion franchise in 1995, Jacksonville had never made it to the Super Bowl, though the organization came close with two AFC Championship appearances in 1996 and 1999. Putting years of ineptitude behind them, it looked like the team would finally get to the big game for the first time.

Unfortunately, the young Jaguars couldn't hold a 20-10 lead, allowing Tom Brady and company to score 14 unanswered points to close out the game for a 24-20 victory. And the franchise hasn't recovered from the gut-wrenching defeat ever since, finishing last in the AFC South each of the past two seasons.

This time last year, Jacksonville tried to regroup after a disappointing five-win season, keeping most of its talented, yet under-performing roster together. The team signed veteran quarterback Nick Foles, believing he could lead the franchise back to the playoffs.

But that didn't happen, as Foles suffered a broken collarbone in the season opener, star cornerback Jalen Ramsey was traded before the deadline, and the Jaguars floundered to a 6-10 finish.

Taking a different approach this offseason, general manager David Caldwell dealt cornerback A.J. Bouye to the Broncos for a fourth-round pick on Tuesday and per various reports, Jacksonville is shopping several other high-priced players seeking draft picks to expedite the rebuild process.

Considering the amount of talent the Jaguars have on their roster for a sub-.500 squad, could the Seahawks inquire about the availability of one of those veterans and take part in Caldwell's fire sale?

If there's one star player who makes a ton of sense for Seattle from a scheme fit, it would be long-time NFC West nemesis Calais Campbell. The 33-year old defensive end hasn't shown many signs of decline, as he earned his third straight Pro Bowl nod with 56 tackles and 6.5 sacks in 2019.

One of the best defensive linemen in the game, Campbell has racked up at least 20 quarterback hits in five straight seasons and hasn't finished with less than 10 tackles for loss since 2009. He's been extremely durable as well, playing in all 16 regular season games five straight seasons and nine times total in his career.

When he became a free agent prior to the 2017 season, Seattle expressed interest in Campbell. But as one of the most sought after free agents on the market, he quickly became too expensive and struck a four-year, $60 million contract with Jacksonville.

With the possibility the Seahawks could lose Jadeveon Clowney and Jarran Reed in free agency later this month, Campbell could immediately be plugged into the lineup as a short-term replacement. But as he enters the twilight of his career, his current contract maybe prohibitive when it comes to trading for him.

Entering the final year of the massive contract he signed in March 2017, Campbell is slated to earn a $15 million base salary and he carries a whopping $17.5 million cap hit. Regardless of how good of a player he still is, nobody wants to pay that price for a veteran with 12 years of tread on his tires.

Barring a restructure or extension to lower that cap hit, there's no way Schneider would bring on such a hefty contract.

Looking at other veterans Seattle could potentially inquire about, Jacksonville has shown interest in moving center Brandon Linder and guard Andrew Norwell. But neither player has performed up to their contracts over the last two seasons and each carries a cap hit of at least $8 million in 2020.

Though he has no guaranteed money left on his deal, Norwell's contract would be especially prohibitive, as he still has three years left on the massive five-year, $66.5 million contract he signed in 2018. His cap hits over the next three years? $14.5 million, $15 million, and $16 million.

As for star pass rusher Yannick Ngakoue, the Jaguars haven't expressed any interest in trading him despite the player's public statements about having no interest signing a long-term deal to stay in Jacksonville. He will likely be franchise tagged and require at least a first-round pick in exchange before signing an expensive extension.

Would the Seahawks explore such a deal? Since orchestrating trades for Percy Harvin and Jimmy Graham, Schneider hasn't dealt a first-round pick for a proven commodity, but Ngakoue is only 24 years old and may be worth that price point.

Ultimately, Schneider and Seattle's front office staff never leave a stone unturned trying to improve the roster. Given past interest in Campbell and the team's dire need for pass rushing talents like Ngakoue, it would be surprising if he hasn't checked in with Caldwell to see what he's asking for in return.

Still, Schneider has shown more of an aversion to giving up market value in "win now" type trades in recent years, and even with over $40 million in cap space to work with, it seems unlikely he will be willing to pull the trigger and absorb another large contract unless it is for minimal draft compensation and/or a contract restructure can be agreed upon.