Russell Wilson Contract: Latest Comments, Rumors Surrounding Seahawks QB

Russell Wilson has led the Seattle Seahawks to consecutive Super Bowls while playing on a rookie contract. He is scheduled to make a base salary of $798,651 in 2015 and is looking to ink a new deal to stay with the Seahawks. 

Continue for updates.

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Cole: Wilson Seeking Contract Structured Like Cutler's

Monday, May 18

Bleacher Report NFL insider Jason Cole broke down the type of contract Wilson is seeking from the Seahawks:

On May 15, Cole reported on what he was hearing about negotiations between the Seahawks and Wilson and the chances of there being a deal before the season:

ESPN.com's Terry Blount passed along comments from Seahawks general manager John Schneider back on April 16 regarding the team's negotiations with Wilson: 

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"Every negotiation is unique in and of itself and this is no different," Schneider said. "He's our quarterback. We'd love him to be our quarterback. But the thing is we need to keep as many of these guys together as we possibly can. What I can tell you is that this is the ultimate team sport. We have a track record of rewarding our players that we recognize as core players."

Wilson is entering his fourth NFL season, having led the Seahawks to back-to-back Super Bowls. He is scheduled to make $1.5 million this season, but a new deal is expected to pay him over $20 million a year and more than $100M overall.

"We want to be a consistent championship-caliber football team, one that the community and the Northwest is extremely proud of every year and has high expectations and hopes for," Schneider said. "We have to be able to protect ourselves as we go and make smart decisions in trying to keep this whole thing together as long as we possibly can.

"I think you've seen over the last several years now a philosophy of competition at every position and trying to acquire as many players as you possibly can and to make it fit. We've done this since Day 1."

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Wilson himself commented on negotiations back on March 29 to John Boyle of the Herald, as the quarterback discussed his mentality in regards to a new deal:

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“In terms of my contract, I don't really talk about that kind of stuff,” Wilson told reporters in Surprise, Ariz. “I love the game of football. I love playing the game of football. I try to put my best foot forward and I want to be the best to ever play the game. That's the way I look at it.

“I've been fortunate enough to win a lot of games at such a young age and to be able to play with some great guys and have some great comeback wins and win a Super Bowl, and go to back to back Super Bowls. It's been special. So that's what I focus on. I focus on the next opportunity that I have. The rest will come. I believe God is going to bless me. I don't know what's going to happen, but I trust always. And I trust it's going to work out the way it's supposed to.”

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Reports of a new deal first surfaced back on Jan. 10, when Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported that Wilson was in line to receive a massive contract extension, one that would make him the richest quarterback in the NFL.

According to Spotrac, Wilson is scheduled to earn a base salary of only $798,651 in 2015. Fifty-two quarterbacks, including Tarvaris Jackson, Josh Johnson, Kellen Clemens and Dan Orlovsky, had a higher base salary than Wilson had in 2014.

Despite his value to the Seahawks, it's debatable whether Wilson should be the highest-paid quarterback in the league.

As QB salaries continue to increase, though, it's only natural that each extension becomes more costly than the last. Andrew Luck will almost certainly earn a bigger extension whenever he decides to sign, and the same could be said of Cam Newton.

The bigger issue for Seattle will be how to retain the majority of its key players yet still remain under the cap.

The Baltimore Ravens had to make tough financial decisions in the aftermath of Joe Flacco's extension, releasing a few stars integral to their Super Bowl title in 2012.

Seattle has done a great job of unearthing hidden gems in the draft, and it will need to continue doing so to ensure that the team remains competitive in the coming years.

At the very least, the Seahawks know that the quarterback position won't be an issue for the long term as long as they can secure Wilson to a new deal.