Why a Seattle Seahawks trade for a star edge unlikely

At this point in the calendar, just about all the big moves NFL teams are going to make for the upcoming season have happened.

Camp preview: Breaking down Seattle Seahawks’ defensive position battles

Even a move like the Seattle Seahawks made over the weekend when they released Noah Fant came as a bit of a surprise due to its timing, even though the veteran tight end had been speculated as a salary cap causality at the start of the offseason.

While there may not end up being any more massive moves before now and the start of the season, there at least is the potential for two with All-Pro pass rushers Trey Hendrickson of the Cincinnati Bengals and Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys, who are each in the midst of contract disputes with their respective teams.

In the case of the Seahawks, they already have a defense that showed promise during a huge turnaround in the second half last season. But the addition of a player like Hendrickson or Parsons could be what takes the defense from good to great, and potentially even elite.

Could the Seahawks still swing a deal for either pass rusher before the season starts? Former NFL quarterback Brock Huard weighed in during his Blue 88 segment on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk.

“I think it is a 0.0001% shot for either of those men,” Huard said. “… I think the better shot would be Trey because the Bengals have played hardball in the past, and you’ve seen even a Carson Palmer retire and Andrew Whitworth find his way out of there. I think Trey would be a better shot, but I don’t think either of them is a legitimate shot.”

Huard understands the impact either Hendrickson or Parsons could make on this Seattle defense. However, what he’s hearing from the Seahawks makes a deal for one of those pricey defensive standouts seem highly unlikely.

“The great challenge in this and the more that I talk to folks down there, it is we are not going to do that to the detriment of our own,” Huard said. “We firmly believe that Devon Witherspoon is going to be a force multiplier and help this defense be elite, and we want him here and we will pay him and have to pay him. We firmly believe that Charles Cross is going to continue to ascend and this is a system that should actually showcase him even more, and we are going to pay him.

“We firmly believe that (Jaxon Smith-Njigba) can be like Cooper Kupp was for the Rams in this system. He can take that kind of leap. He can be 100-catch, 1,000-yard, 10-touchdown kind of guy, and we want to take care of him. Those are foundational pieces that you’ve got to keep a lot of cash (around for). And because of that, I don’t think a Hendrickson or a Micah Parsons is a real possibility.”

Listen to the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6-10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

Why a Seattle Seahawks trade for a star edge unlikely

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