Seahawks GM John Schneider addresses rumor of being targeted for Detroit Lions vacancy

Seahawks

Seahawks GM John Schneider addresses rumor of being targeted for Detroit Lions vacancy

/ by Peter Socotch

Seahawks

IMAGN

With the NFL offseason looming for the majority of teams, there will be a lot of firings, hirings and post mortems to be had.

For the Seattle Seahawks, they're headed to the playoffs once again with a long-shot chance to earn a first round bye.

Seattle will enter the playoffs for the 9th time in 11 seasons under the regime of head coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider.

That type of success has led to many coaches leaving the Seahawks for increased roles on other teams.

It's part of the business.

But, never has the Carroll-Schneider nucleus been disrupted.

On Sunday, though, Ian Rappaport reported the Detroit Lions plan on pursuing Schneider for their vacant GM opening.

From the report:

"While it would be unthinkable in any other circumstance for the Lions to be able to lure a decorated GM such as him, Schneider doesn't have primary authority over all personnel decisions in Seattle -- Carroll does. That hasn't really mattered, since Carroll and Schneider are in lockstep, but under the NFL's anti-tampering policy, the Lions or another team could try to interview Schneider if it offered him full control. Another team is also likely going to make a run at Schneider."

Prior to Sunday's game vs. the San Francisco 49ers, Schneider seemed to debunk any rumors connecting him and the Lions vacancy.

Seahawks GM John Schneider on @710ESPNSeattle asked about rumors connecting him to Detroit vacancy says he and wife Traci "love it here'' and that there are always lots of rumors this time of year, calling it an interesting morning, concludes "that's about that. We're good.''
— Bob Condotta (@bcondotta) January 3, 2021

John Schneider on @710ESPNSeattle #Seahawks pregame show, about NFL Network report today Detroit wants him to be its new GM: "Interesting morning...

"Traci and I my wife and I love it here." He calls it "rumors."

"That's about that. We're good," Schneider concluded.
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) January 3, 2021

Schneider called it an interesting morning when asked by @RaibleKIRO7 about the NFL Network report stating that Detroit will pursue him. Here was Schneider's full response: pic.twitter.com/dcc6d4IRCA
— Brady Henderson (@BradyHenderson) January 3, 2021

Additionally, ProFootballTalk wrote about how the Lions’ ability to hire Schneider won’t be quite so simple even there was mutual interest and that Rappaport's characterization of how the Lions could land Schneider is "quite possibly inaccurate."

Florio dives into the 2020-21 NFL Anti-Tampering Policy regarding "High-Level Club Employees” and how they cannot be hired away by other teams while under contract absent compensation.

And there may be some ambiguity about teams' ability to pursue Schneider and his "High-Level Club Employees” classification given how closely he works with Carroll.

From Florio:

Here’s the key phrase from the definition: “Final authority regarding the composition of the 53-player roster is not a requirement.” The Lions could still get Schneider, but they’d have to first negotiate compensation with the Seahawks before negotiating a contract with Schneider. And Schneider’s contract may be at the root of this one.

Mike Florio

Schneider signed a 5-year contract extension with the Seahawks in 2016 that will keep him in Seattle through next season. He'll become a free agent in 2022, unless Seattle elects to extend him again.

The Lions have also reportedly interviewed several other candidates, so Schneider may be a pie in the sky, an impossibility.

Maybe his desirability will ultimately lead to another extension from the Seahawks?

Time will tell.