Ruskell Does Hill A Favor

The Seattle Seahawks seemingly were playing hardball with linebacker Leroy Hill by rescinding the $8 million-plus franchise tag on the same day that linebacker Aaron Curry arrived via the fourth overall pick in the draft. Ultimately, however, the Seahawks honored the offer that had been on the table before the franchise tag was applied to Hill. Per a league source, the contract Hill recently signed essentially matches the pre-tag offer, with some extra money added to the likely unreachable incentives. The move also helped agent Todd France get off the hot seat. France has been widely criticized by his colleagues in the business (who, frankly, would criticize their own mothers if it meant possibly swiping one of their mothers’ prospective or actual clients) for failing to insist on Hill signing the franchise tender before or, more importantly, after the Seahawks picked Curry. Meanwhile, Seahawks president Tim Ruskell privately is winning praise for not sticking it to Hill by reducing the offer. As we understand it, Hill had nothing else even remotely close to his deal with the Seahawks. There’s a belief in some circles that, based on the market for his services, Hill might have been required to take a deal in the range of $4 million per year if the Seahawks hadn’t opted to make their prior offer available. At a time when Hill might be inclined to piss and/or moan about the rescinded franchise tag, here’s hoping Hill realizes that the Seahawks did him a big favor after the fact.