Chargers, Seahawks Talking Vincent Jackson Trade, Sort of

Added on Aug 21, 2010 by Eric Galko in

NFL

By now, it’s been pretty well documented that Vincent Jackson wants a substantial pay raise from his now $600,000 contract, but the Chargers aren’t meeting his extremely high demands, which include $9 million a year and an undisclosed amount of guaranteed money.

So, in the past few days, the Chargers have been open for Vincent Jackson to talk to other teams about a contract and maybe an eventual trade. Well, make that “team”.

The Seattle Seahawks have been disappointedwith their receivers since before the Pete Carroll era began, and it’s not simply going to be turned around, even though former USC receiver turned Top 10 bust in Detroit Mike Williams look like he could be finally “getting it”.

So when Jackson was rumored to be “finished” in San Diego and wanted a new contract or wanted to leave, Seattle came up quite quickly as a possible suitor for his services. However, the most intriguing aspect of the story is that the Chargers have not allowed any other team to discuss a contract with Jackson. Just the Seahawks.

Even though teams like the Redskins, Cardinals, 49ers, and maybe even the Vikings would be happy to at least broach the option of making a trade for Jackson.

The interest in Jackson and his interest in a new contract stems completely from his talents. He’s been a routine headache off the field and is suspended for the first three games of the season. So he’s not an ideal starting receiver based on the locker room appeal. But, as we saw with TO in the past, team’s will trade and pay for an immensely talented weapon like Jackson.

There are many theories on why GM AJ Smith has taken this what looks like idiotic approach to working through a contract holdout. If you think about it, wouldn’t more teams talking to him drive up the price and trade offers?

One theory is that AJ Smith is looking to see only what the market value for Jackson may be by seeing what the Seahawks offer. That way, Jackson can see what he’s really worth, the Chargers can offer him just a little more, and all can be settled.

The second theory is that the Seahawks have a player, likely a receiver, that the Chargers would like in return, possibly Deon Butler. Also, the team’s past trade experience with Charlie Whitehurst to the Seahawks, in which it was widely regarded that Seattle over-traded, could provide some appeal.

Either way, it’s a bold option for AJ Smith and the Chargers to only be working with one NFL team.

The closer it comes to the season and the distance that remains apart in their contract discussions doesn’t begin to collapse an inch, the more and more likely it is that Jackson won’t play in San Diego for the 2010-2011 season, and maybe won’t play football this year at all. Fantasy owners beware.