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Per multiple media reports, running back Shaun Alexander will be released in the near future by the Seattle Seahawks.
The move isn’t surprising, given the huge contract that Alexander received in 2006 and the low production that the team has gotten from him since then. We consistently heard during Alexander’s record-setting 2005 campaign that the team was leery about paying him big money due to fears that, once he got paid, the fire would go out.
The timing is a little peculiar, however. Our best guess is that the Seahawks are hoping that Alexander’s arrival on the market in the days before the draft might cause some teams to be distracted from their draft preparations, as they ponder whether to pursue Alexander — and as they potentially expedite the process if multiple teams join the hunt.
Finally, we continue to see references to the notion that the Seahawks were not able to cut Alexander until his injured wrist heals. That is simply incorrect. As to an injury suffered in 2007, he can be cut while not healthy, and the team would be responsible for at most $275,000 in 2008. If Alexander signs elsewhere, the Seahawks owe him nothing.
And that’s another reason to cut Alexander now. If he is seriously injured during offseason workouts or minicamps, the team would potentially be on the hook for all or part of his 2008 base salary.
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