The offseason program is in full swing for the Seattle Seahawks, with players taking to the field for organized team activities in Phase III before the news cycles hits the slow summer doldrums of late June and early July. With that in mind, the Seahawks have their entire draft class under contract, a departure from the tendency of seasons past to wait until the eve of training camp to sign the drafted players that the Hawks had developed in the wake of the Malik McDowell debacle.

All that said, here’s a quick look at the contracts for the members of the 2024 Seattle draft class, along with the guarantees they received and their 2024 cap hits:

• Byron Murphy (1.16): $16.08M, $16.08M fully guaranteed, $2.924M 2024 cap hit
• Christian Haynes (3.81): $5.8M, $1.04M fully guaranteed, $1.055M 2024 cap hit
• Tyrice Knight (4.118): $4.79M, $773k fully guaranteed, $988k 2024 cap hit
• A.J. Barner (4.121): $4.78M, $755k fully guaranteed, $984k 2024 cap hit
• Nehemiah Pritchett (5.136): $4.399M, $379k fully guaranteed, $890k 2024 cap hit
• Sataoa Laumea (6.179): $4.237M, $217k fully guaranteed, $849k 2024 cap hit
• D.J. James (6.192): $4.204M, $184k fully guaranteed, $841k 2024 cap hit
• Mike Jerrell (6.207): $4.18M, $160k fully guaranteed, $835k 2024 cap hit

The first point worth noticing is obviously that the rookie wage scale obviously favors early round picks when it comes to fully guaranteed money at signing. The amount of fully guaranteed money in Murphy’s rookie contract is several multiples of all the other fully guaranteed money combined. This should come as no surprise, as first round picks are so heavily coveted, however, it is the large guarantees given to first round picks that exposes teams to cap risk.

Certainly no team wants the players their squad selects to bust, as the hope and optimism that comes with the draft is that players will reach their ceilings and sky-high potential. However, things don’t always work out that way, with injuries, work ethics and sometimes even ATV accidents stopping high ceiling prospects from reaching their ceiling, and that is the risk that comes with the right to make early selections in the draft.

Bringing things back to the discussion of fully guaranteed money at signing for draft picks, the Seahawks 2024 draft class is a perfect example of why it can be better for players to go undrafted, rather than hear their name called late on Day 3. The last two players selected by Seattle this year, D.J. James and Mike Jerrell, received $184k and $160k fully guaranteed at signing. That is less fully guaranteed money at signing than the Hawks gave to undrafted free agent offensive lineman Garret Greenfield, whose contract includes $195k in fully guaranteed money between signing bonus and salary guarantees.

The fact that an undrafted free agent received more guarantees than two of the late round draft picks of the Seahawks is just one of the quirks of the rookie wage scale that consistently raises eyebrows, and is something that could be up for discussion when the collective bargaining agreement comes up for renegotiation at the end of the decade.

SEATTLE – It was unquestionably a special evening for basketball in Seattle on Wednesday night when Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever came to town to take on the Seattle Storm.

The rookie sensation helped the Storm draw a sold-out crowd of 18,343 fans to Climate Pledge Arena, which set a new franchise record. And there was an undeniable buzz in arena from the moment Clark stepped up the court and was swarmed for autographs during warmups.

That’s been the norm for the former Iowa star and all-time NCAA scoring leader. Clark captivated the nation during her collegiate career with the Hawkeyes. As a senior last season, she led the nation in scoring at 31.6 points per game and led Iowa to the national title game, becoming the first player to accomplish both feats in the same campaign.

Clark now plays for the team that had the third-worst record in the WNBA last season and is 0-5 after Wednesday’s 85-83 loss to the Storm. But that hasn’t dampened any of the hype surrounding the 22-year-old phenom. The jersey manufacturer Fanatics sold out of most sizes of Clark’s Fever jersey within an hour of her being drafted.

“It was pretty incredible. That crowd and that environment was great, just looking around at like a sea of people on both sides, behind the baskets,” Clark said postgame. “It was a great game. Obviously I would’ve loved if we would have won, but I hope these fans continue to still show up for Seattle. They’ve got a great team. Hopefully when we come back here they’ll be here. It’s so fun playing in front of those environments.”

Clark and WNBA peers Angel Reese and Cameron Brink are among talented rookie class added excitement to the growing WNBA. The Associated Press’ Doug Feinberg reported that the league saw a 14% increase in attendance during the opening week of the season. Clark’s debut against the New York Liberty also drew record viewership numbers on ESPN. The 2.1 million average viewers of the broadcast was the best ever for a WNBA game on the network, and ESPN’s five broadcasted games in the season’s first week saw an average of 1.43 million viewers, an 181% increase from the first five games broadcasted last season.

“It’s definitely hard to put into perspective the reach and impact you have not only across the country, but really across the world,” Clark said, “and that’s obviously something I hope and want to do, especially because we want to make women’s basketball even more global than it already is and impact people with (showing) young boys and young girls what basketball can do for their lives. So it’s definitely hard to put into perspective, and it’s cool for me to have people come up to me (around the world) that say their fans and they love women’s basketball and they love the teams I’ve been a part of.”

Caitlin Clark pregame asked about an expected attendance record tonight at Climate Pledge Arena. pic.twitter.com/fcoj7FEkHG

— Zac Hereth (@ZacHereth) May 23, 2024

The sellout crowd at Climate Pledge Arena included a number of well-known Seattle Sports stars. Tyler Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Ngjiba and a slew of their Seattle Seahawks teammates, former UW Huskies and NBA standouts Detlef Schrempf and Isaiah Thomas, and former Storm forward Gabby Williams were among the many in attendance. It was also the Storm’s first sellout since 2022, and the attention that Clark commanded to women’s basketball in Seattle didn’t go unnoticed by her opponents.

“Amazing. I think it’s great for the city of Seattle,” Storm coach Noelle Quinn said of the turnout. “I think it’s great for women’s basketball (and) basketball in general to have an ability to put new eyes on the game and generate this magnetic energy that’s coming from basketball. I love it. I love that I was a part of it, and hopefully we can keep it flowing.”

Video: Caitlin Clark brings record crowd to game at Seattle Storm

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At this point in his career, learning a new offense certainly isn’t a new thing for Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith.

Salk’s Observations: What we saw at Seahawks’ first open OTA practice

As he prepares for his 12th season in the NFL and potentially his third as Seattle’s starting QB, the 33-year-old Smith is getting set to play under his seventh different offensive coordinator. The new man in charge is Ryan Grubb, who came across town to join first-year head coach Mike Macdonald’s staff after a success-filled two-year run as the UW Huskies’ offensive coordinator.

The Seahawks are still in the early stages of installing their new offense, but Smith already feels like Grubb’s system is a good match for his skill set.

“I feel like I’m a dropback passer, and I feel like this is a dropback offense – an offense that’s gonna spread the ball around (and) trust the quarterbacks to make the right decisions pre- and post-snap,” Smith said Wednesday after Seattle’s second OTA practice. “And I feel like that’s something that I’m really good at.

“I think Grubb has a great system,” he added. “It demands a lot from the quarterback pre- and post-snap, and he has a great way of giving us some answers. And so the thing we have to do is just be really disciplined with all of our reads, reading our keys, and then obviously getting out there and making the plays when they come about.”

During his time at UW, Grubb oversaw one of the most prolific offenses in college football. Led by Heisman Trophy runner-up quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and a trio of top-100 NFL draft picks at receiver, the Huskies carved up opposing defenses on their way to the College Football Playoff national championship game.

With the Seahawks, Grubb will be tasked with elevating an offense that dropped from 10th in the league in scoring in 2022 to 17th in 2023. A slew of injuries along the offensive line undoubtedly played a major role in the decline last season, but there’s hope that Grubb’s scheme can be a better match for Smith and the talented receiving trio of DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

“He’s a really detail-oriented guy,” Macdonald said of Grubb. “He knows exactly what he’s looking for. He’s very precise. As a team, we want clarity in everything we’re doing. We want the guys to know exactly what the expectations are, exactly what’s being asked of them, and he has that. He’s a very clear communicator.”

Smith feels good about where the offense currently stands in the installation process. He said he’s spent a lot of time studying and having meetings with the various offensive position groups.

“I feel like we’re in a really good spot, honestly,” Smith said. “I feel like personally, I have a really good grasp of the offense. I know there’s still things that I have to learn, but from the installs that we’ve done, really sharp with those things.

“I think there’s gonna be great things coming for us,” he added. “… Grubb’s doing a great job, and it’s our job to make the plays come alive and make it all look good.”

Seahawks challenging Geno

After spending six seasons as an NFL backup, Smith resurrected his career in Seattle with a breakout 2022 campaign. Smith received AP Comeback Player of the Year honors that season after leading the NFL in completion rate, finishing seventh in ESPN’s QBR metric and throwing for 4,282 yards, 30 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Smith’s stats declined last year, while playing behind an injury-depleted offensive line and missing two games himself with a groin injury. His completion rate dropped five percentage points, he fell to 14th in QBR and he threw for 3,624 yards, 20 TDs and nine interceptions. However, he closed the year strong, posting a league-best 81.4 QBR over the final six weeks of the season.

“He’s highly competitive,” Macdonald said. “I love how Geno works. We’re pushing him to take the next step as a football player and as a leader, and I think he’s answering the call. Really excited about Geno, just getting to know him. Just really such a respect for how hard this man works at his craft.”

Geno, Howell building rapport

After acquiring 23-year-old quarterback Sam Howell in a trade with the Washington Commanders in March, the Seahawks now have two quarterbacks on their roster who were full-time starters last year. Howell, a fifth-round draft pick in 2022, started all 17 games for the Commanders last season. He finished 24th in QBR, while throwing for 3,946 yards, 21 TDs and 21 interceptions.

Smith said he and Howell were among about 15 offensive players on the Seahawks who took an offseason trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

“We’ve been hanging out, we went to Cabo, we got some golf in, developing our relationship,” Smith said. “Sam’s a really, really talented young player. He’s played a lot of football (for being) that young. He put a lot of great things on tape. And I think for me, the whole starter-backup thing, I don’t ever wrap my mind around it. The quarterback group has gotta be a collective unit. Whoever goes in the game has gotta have the support of the other guy. So for me, it’s always about us learning and working together and pushing each other together, and that can only provide us with an excellent chance to get better.”

More Seattle Seahawks coverage

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• Huard: The Seahawks position group most thrilled by new schemes
• Ranked: Who are Seattle Seahawks’ five most irreplaceable players?
• What Big Ray wants to see out of Seahawks LT Charles Cross
• Did schedule makers make it easy for Seattle Seahawks? Insider explains

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