Michael Bennett Implores Seahawks to Sign Kam Chancellor to Contract Extension

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett took to Twitter on Tuesday with a message for the organization: Sign safety Kam Chancellor to a contract extension.

Chancellor, 29, is entering the final year of his contract and will make $6.8 million in 2017, per Spotrac.com.

The Seahawks have an interesting decision to make in regard to the veteran safety, however.

On one hand, he was once again excellent in 2016, accumulating 85 tackles, two interceptions and a forced fumble in 12 games. Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus ranked him as the 34th best player in the NFL in 2016:

"Chancellor is one of only a few defensive backs with the ability to take over games and make a defining impact in them. He can come down into the box and ably fill in as an extra linebacker for the Seahawks, but can also play deep—an attribute he probably doesn’t get enough credit for overall. Chancellor earned solid grades this season in every facet PFF measures and missed just four tackles all season, despite taking on blocks and making attempts at the line of scrimmage that many other safeties aren’t tasked with."

Beyond his production, Chancellor is also a team leader and arguably the heart and soul of Seattle's defense. His value is unquestionable.

But the other side of this equation is the question of how much longer he'll be able to play at an elite level. As Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times noted, age is a factor when it comes to extending Chancellor:

"...Chancellor would also be 30 by the time any extension would kick in (a new contract would begin with the 2018 season) and entering what would be his ninth season. Chancellor has also missed nine games due to injury the past two seasons and is coming off having had surgery to clean up bone spurs in both ankles that has him currently limited during OTAs."

"The team might well want to wait to get into the season to see if the current Chancellor is as effective as the old one has been—the Seahawks also have a little of a history of signing extensions in December, as they did last year with Bennett and in 2014 with Cliff Avril and K.J. Wright."

So while players like Bennett and Seattle's fanbase almost certainly want to see Chancellor given an extension, the Seahawks still have plenty to evaluate.