Huard: Ndamukong Suh would be worth Seahawks breaking the bank

In NFL free agency, spending money wisely is just as important as which players teams spend their money on. But in certain cases, an available player is worth opening up the checkbook for.

Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh could be that player for the Seahawks, according to 710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock Huard.

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“Ndamukong Suh is a guy that I think is a game-changer,” Huard said of the three-time first-team All-Pro who was released from his lucrative contract with the Dolphins with three years left Wednesday. “I have seen D-linemen wreck games. I watched Fletcher Cox be the significant guy in the middle to help Philadelphia. We’ve watched (the Rams’) Aaron Donald destroy every scheme and plan the Seahawks have. And a motivated Ndamukong Suh, who can come home to the Pacific Northwest where he’s originally from and end his career in a dominant fashion, that is a guy that I am more than intrigued with.”

Something that could make the 31-year-old Portland native especially appealing to the Seahawks is with him being released instead of hitting free agency at the end of his contract, signing Suh wouldn’t cost Seattle anything in compensatory draft picks (John Clayton explains that here). And while Miami deemed Suh not worth an average of $18.275 million over the next three seasons, he’s only one year removed from his last Pro Bowl nomination and is still considered one of the best defensive linemen in the game.

“There’s not many Ndamukong Suhs at 300-something pounds that run 5-flat (in the 40-yard dash) and just totally envelop and destroy lines of scrimmage,” Huard said. “There’s just not many of those – there’s not one in this draft.”

Suh shared a tweet Monday of himself walking the streets of Seattle and he was reported to have had a meeting with the Seahawks, so it seems likely the Seahawks are interested in bringing him in to replace Michael Bennett, whose trade to Philadelphia was made official Wednesday, and possibly Sheldon Richardson, who is an unrestricted free agent.

⏱ 5:25 AM
📍 Seattle, WA#RiseAndGrind pic.twitter.com/ABbCAvutj3

— Ndamukong Suh (@NdamukongSuh) March 12, 2018

It would make sense for Suh to be interested in coming to Seattle, too, especially since he reportedly considered the Seahawks his No. 1 choice to sign with before he went to Miami in 2015.

While Huard clearly thinks Suh is the right kind of player for the Seahawks, he was practical in saying the Seahawks can only break the bank for Suh if they feel very strongly that he can make a huge difference for them.

“It has to be them saying, ‘If we’re gonna break our fiscal responsibility, it’s because we believe so wholeheartedly in this guy that he can impact our franchise for the next three years.’ And that’s what you’re looking at, probably a three-year deal where you’re going to pay significant money for his services.”

You can hear the full Brock and Salk segment about the Seahawks and Suh in this podcast.

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