Clayton doubts Trufant will be back with Seahawks
Jan 6, 2012, 12:33 AM | Updated: Jan 12, 2012, 9:41 am
By Brady Henderson
Marcus Trufant isn’t one of the 18 Seahawks set to become an unrestricted free agent, but his future with the team seems to be just as much in question.
The 31-year-old cornerback has been beset by injuries two of the past three seasons and has seen other, less expensive players at his position emerge in his absence. Those factors lead ESPN’s John Clayton to believe Trufant won’t be back with the Seahawks next season.
 A back injury cut Marcus Trufant’s season short. (AP) |
“You realize now Brandon Browner is a first alternate to the Pro Bowl, Richard Sherman has done a great job, and they get Walter Thurmond back,” Clayton told “The Kevin Calabro Show” on Thursday. “Those are the three corners.”
Trufant, a first-round pick in 2003, is the longest-tenured Seahawk and one of only two players left over from the 2005 team that advanced to the Super Bowl. He signed a six-year, $50.2 million extension following a Pro Bowl season in 2007, but has been slowed by injuries ever since.
After starting every game last season, he played in four games in 2011 before landing on injured reserve with a back injury similar to the one that caused him to miss much of the 2009 season. He had one interception and 20 tackles this season.
Trufant took a hefty pay cut before the season which reportedly reduced his 2011 base salary from $5.9 million to $3 million. According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, Trufant’s salary for the remaining two years of his deal were unchanged. That means he is still scheduled to make a base salary of $7.2 million in 2012 and $8.8 million in 2013, according to Florio.
“I think it’s going to be very difficult under the circumstances — unless he takes a significant pay cut — to have Trufant back,” Clayton said.
Clayton said he expects the Seahawks to continue adding cornerbacks through the draft.
