Seahawks quandary: extend Bobby Wagner or Jarran Reed?

So who do you want to pay? Based on last year alone, I’m going with Bobby Wagner. He was the best in the league at his position, and the additional hit to the Seahawks finances is affordable. Releasing Barkevious Mingo would pay for it Wagner’s extension. I know it sounds like I hate the guy; I don’t. But I’m pretty sure Seattle can find someone to post 48 tackles and a sack for a lot less than $5 million.

Based on their careers, there’s absolutely no contest between Wagner and Reed. That should be evident to anyone who’s watched the Seahawks for more than one year. Just in case you’re new to the ranks of the 12s, here’s one measure of their value. Wagner has 98 points of approximate value, according to the formula of pro-football-reference.com. Reed has 19 points.

As of now, Seattle has $28 million in cap space for the top 51 roster spots, again according to spotrac.com. Counting all roster spots, the team has a bit over $8 million in cap space. The Hawks can probably afford to extend Reed as well as Wagner. There’s no need to see if Wagner can maintain his level of performance. I have no doubt he was tackling stuffed animals in his crib at six months.

Yes, the NFL pays players based on what they will do, not what they’ve done. Which is why Reed needs to show he can at least maintain last year’s jump, if not take another leap forward. If he gets off to a good start in 2019, sure, pay him. Younger or not, he’s nowhere near the proven talent of Wagner. I pay Bobby Wagner now. He’s given Seattle every reason to believe he’ll be the best in the league for the foreseeable future.