Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner recently shared his belief that the team is “way better” heading into the defense of their Super Bowl title, but another member of the championship squad doesn’t think things are going to be easier for the Seahawks this time around.
Fullback Michael Robinson’s contract expired and may have reached the end of his playing days, leaving him free to wonder if the team’s offseason activities might hinder their attempt at back-to-back titles. Robinson pointed to the loss of players like Red Bryant, Chris Clemons and himself and wondered if a team stocked with young players off big contract extensions will suffer for the lack of grizzed veterans.
“My question for the Seahawks this year is ... there’s a lot of young guys in that locker room with new money,” Robinson said on the Dave Dameshek Football Program. “When issues come up in the locker room, who is the veteran that settles it? . ... Things come up, ‘Hey guys -- stop doing that! Hey, you go over there, you go over there, and it’s over. No more.’ And guys would stop. Right now, guys have gotten paid, you know what I mean? Guys have got egos, you know what I mean? That’s just only natural with money, and they have to watch against that in the locker room, and that’s something that Pete [Carroll] can’t see -- their offices are upstairs. They just have to keep a close watch on it.”
Those are concerns that have come up with almost every title team in the free agency era and the rarity of repeat champions speaks to the difficulty of going the distance in consecutive seasons. The Seahawks are clearly talented enough to buck that trend and they still have several young stars looking for the kinds of big contracts (or, as Percy Harvin said recently, other kinds of fulfillment) that Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas got this offseason, so they may be able to avoid the pitfalls that Robinson is worried about.