Three dream roles Kam Chancellor could fill with the Seahawks

When Kam Chancellor talks, 12s listen. Let’s hope that Seahawks owner Jody Allen likes what he says about the future of the team. I have a few ideas about what he might have to say myself.

It speaks volumes about the Seahawks season that the biggest story in weeks focuses on a player who retired four years ago. But when that player is Kam Chancellor, there’s every reason in the world for the 12s to take notice. Let’s hope that the Seahawks Chair Jody Allen is as interested in Kam’s thoughts as we are. We know she’s taken an active interest in the future of the team. I can’t imagine she wouldn’t want to meet with one of the best football minds ever associated with her team.

For the six people who haven’t heard this story, here’s the genesis. On December 28th, Seahawks legend Kam Chancellor put the following statement out on Twitter. The universe promptly exploded with speculation, as it should. For reference, as I write this, there are 12,300 likes, 1,570 retweets, 492 quotes, and as you can see, 639 replies. Those comments range from the sublime to the absolutely ridiculous. What a shock, right? Okay, so here’s Kam’s statement:

Kam Chancellor could mean anything about the Seattle Seahawks

This is hardly the first time we’ve discussed the possibilities of Kam Chancellor having a future role with the Seahawks. Among the comments are statements as ridiculous as Kam wants to clean house. As in fire the entire coaching staff including Pete Carroll. Several posts claim he wants to trade Russell Wilson and rebuild the Seahawks from scratch. Okay, those are possibilities, sure. It’s also possible that I’ll join NASA and be the first person to set foot on Mars. Just not very likely.

Kam Chancellor stating that he needs to have a discussion with the defacto owner of the Hawks isn’t quite the same as “We need to blow this team up”. Does anyone really think that Chancellor, of all people, would pull his punches? Please. If he thinks Pete Carrol needs to go, he’d say so. Same for trading Russell Wilson or any other decision. Let’s move on to what Kam might really want to discuss.

Kam Chancellor – special assistant to the Seahawks Chair

This is the least glamourous and least exciting possibility for certain. However, it could be the position that would have the most impact on the Seahawks. As the special assistant, he’d have Jody Allen’s ear on a daily basis. Or at least weekly, after he spends the week dissecting the Hawks latest efforts on the field. That would of course include the play of the defense, offense, and the coaching decisions.

I doubt that Pete would like to be second-guessed, but let’s face it, that’s already happening after every game. At least these opinions would come from a solid base. Plus with Kam reporting directly to Ms. Allen, there would finally be some accountability for those decisions. You know, like letting the play rotation get away from you week after week.

In this role – or call it Executive Vice President if you want; heck, give Chancellor the title of The Great and Powerful Bam Bam, just give him a voice – Kam would also have input on personnel decisions. Does anybody believe that the Seahawks would have stuck with Tre Flowers as long as they did if Chancellor had anything to say about it? It took them far too long to realize that fitting the Seahawks type – length, speed – didn’t equal great play by Flowers.

Now imagine Chancellor sitting in the draft room for the Seahawks? I’m not suggesting he’d have the final say on those selections, but I can’t believe that Pete Carroll and John Schneider wouldn’t value the input of a player who knew the game so well. Professional wrestler Triple H was tagged with the moniker, The Cerebral Assassin. Every member of the 12s knows this perfectly describes Kam Chancellor. I don’t think we’d see as many misses on draft day anymore.

Kam Chancellor, Seahawks owner  – minority share, to be sure

This possibility is another of the conjectures that have been made in wake of Kam’s statement. Frankly, this is the least exciting for me. I’m sure Kam would be pretty happy, though, considering the value of an NFL franchise. It’s not exactly a bad investment, as you can see. According to the site statista.com, the Hawks are currently valued at $3.5 billion – and yes, that’s billion with a “b”.

I mean, that’s getting into Jeff Bezos’ lunch money range. Oh, by the way, statista.com, Paul Allen no longer owns the franchise; you might want to update that. Forbes also lists the team’s value at $3.5 billion and correctly lists the Paul G. Allen Trust as the owner. Good job, gang!

Now there’s one problem with that. Kam Chancellor isn’t exactly in the same financial stratosphere as the typical NFL owner. According to sites such as therichest.com and celebritynetworth.com, Chancellor’s net worth is $21 million. So if he liquidates his entire portfolio from his home and cars to the Gatorade in the fridge, he could buy .6 percent of the Seahawks. That’s six-tenths of one percent. That’s not exactly a lot. It’s worth noting that Chancellor has already pondered an ownership role.

Of course, that isn’t how he would buy-in. He’d join a larger investment group, secure loans, etcetera, etcetera, much as Derek Jeter did to buy into the Marlins baseball team. Jeter leveraged his fame and expertise to be named as the team’s CEO, despite just owning four percent of the team. That would be possible for Chancellor, with one notable exception. Jeter is worth $200 million, roughly ten times Kam’s net worth. It would be much more difficult for the Seattle legend to find his way to the executive suite through ownership the same way Jeter did.

Seahawks could do worse than name Chancellor defensive coordinator – and have

Now we come to the good stuff, the truly exciting stuff. I’m not saying that Kam couldn’t do a lot of good in the front office, but let’s be real here. The man was a virtuoso of controlled violence. It wasn’t just his physical ability that made him one of the greatest safeties in the history of the league, either. Dan Quinn certainly believes Kam has the talent to succeed as a defensive coach. Note the key terms there; communication, connection, leadership. Those all seem to be missing to some degree in the current coaching regime.

I know, 12s, I know. The thoughtful among you are saying, “Dude, sure, we love Kam, but he’s got zero coaching experience”. I imagine some of you are using more colorful terms than “dude”, but that’s okay, too. Would it be ideal for him, or anyone, to come in with no official coaching experience? No, of course not. Although if any player has ever met the definition of a coach on the field, it’s Kam Chancellor.

Okay, so maybe he isn’t the defensive coordinator. How about Jake Heaps’ suggestion about bringing Kam back as a consultant? Note that he included former Seahawks DC Kris Richard in his suggestion. He also followed it up by saying he wasn’t advocating the dismissal of Ken Norton Jr. I’ll just add, check the date; this is from November of 2020:

Fine, bring Kam back as a consultant. Hopefully, Norton would be so offended by having the Seahawks legend looking over his shoulder that he’d quit. We can only dream, right 12s? No matter what position Chancellor fills with the Hawks, there’s no way he wouldn’t bring insight, honesty, and integrity to whatever role he might take. I hope he has much more than just a discussion with Ms. Allen about the future. My hope is that at some level, Kam Chancellor is the future of the Seahawks.