Since being selected 27th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, injuries and inconsistent play have prevented running back Rashaad Penny from coming anywhere close to reaching expectations for the Seahawks.
In three seasons, Penny has only played in 27 out of 48 possible regular season games, including only suiting up for three games coming back from a torn ACL in 2020. Finger, hamstring, and groin injuries also cost him eight games in his first two seasons, limiting him to just 823 combined rushing yards and five touchdowns in his career thus far.
Considering his durability issues and underwhelming performance when healthy, it would seem like an easy choice for Seattle to decline Penny's fifth-year option for the 2022 season. He hasn't proven himself capable of being a feature back as the team envisioned when drafting him.
However, Seattle may face a more difficult decision than expected when deciding whether or not to pick up Penny's option due to numerous factors.
For one, the Seahawks remain high on Penny's upside despite his bad injury luck up to this point. When he has been healthy, he has flashed first-round talent on the field, including rushing for a career-high 129 yards in a win over the Eagles and posting over 100 all-purpose yards in a win over the Vikings in back-to-back weeks before injuring his knee late in the 2019 season.
Secondly, Seattle could lose both Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde in free agency. While it's possible one of those players could return at the right price, the decision to re-sign Alex Collins last month suggests the team may spend its money elsewhere to address other more urgent positional needs and opens the door for Penny to finally have a shot at winning a starting job.
Finally, unlike most positions, the fifth-year option at running back isn't financially inhibiting at all. The NFL released official fifth-year option price tags for 2022 on March 10 and since Penny hasn't been a Pro Bowler or met the playtime criterion, he would cost only $4.523 million to retain for a fifth season, which would currently make him the 16th highest-paid back in the league.
The only complication? Unlike previous seasons, the fifth-year option is now fully guaranteed, meaning the Seahawks would be on the hook for every last cent if they opted in on Penny. His 2021 base salary of $1.948 million would also become fully guaranteed. Given the fact he has never surpassed 500 rushing yards in a season and has missed 21 games due to injuries, Seattle would be taking a significant risk rolling the dice on him as a potential feature back.
With that said, if Penny can finally stay healthy - a major if - and return to his pre-ACL tear form from 2019, he still could arise as a quality NFL starter, especially in Shane Waldron's offense which could feature more under center, wide zone runs that play to his strengths. Now a year removed from his ACL surgery and set to enjoy an offseason without rigorous rehab, there's optimism within the organization that a breakout season could be on tap.
If the Seahawks stick with status quo and don't pick up Penny's fifth-year option - they have declined the option for each of their past two first round picks (Bruce Irvin, Germain Ifedi) - the team risks potentially having to pay him more to re-sign him in 2022 in the event he comes through with a strong season.
Playing any other position, the writing would probably be on the wall for Penny. But due to the financial devaluing of running back league-wide, his option year is affordable enough to warrant strong consideration by Seattle to execute it. It will fascinating to see what direction the organization goes before the May 3 deadline.
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March 10, 2021 at 11:46PM
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Why Seahawks Face a Difficult Decision Regarding Rashaad Penny's Future - SeahawkMaven
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