Seahawks Make Josh Brown Franchise Player

Joe Cool

Administrator

KIRKLAND - The Seattle Seahawks slapped the franchise tag on kicker Josh Brown Thursday afternoon, which means Seattle will tender a minimum of the average salary of the top five kickers in the National Football League, or a 20 percent salary increase, whichever is greater. That number is reportedly slightly more than $2 million.

Brown will be free to negotiate with any other team, but the Seahawks can match any offer or receive two first-round draft choices if they decide not to match. The first day a team may sign a player for the 2007 season is March 2.

“We are excited that Josh will remain a Seahawk,� said President and General Manager Tim Ruskell. “We will continue to talk with his representative in hopes of securing a long-term deal, which is our goal.�

Brown, 27, was originally selected by the Seahawks as the first of two seventh-round picks in the 2003 draft and has played in 64 career games. He has six game-winning field goals in his career, including four in the final minute of regulation last season, which tied a single-season NFL record.

Overall in 2006, he made 25-of-31 field goal attempts and all 36 extra points. For his career, Brown is 88-of-11 on field goals (.793) and has made all but one (180-of 181, .994) of his extra points.
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I can breathe a sigh of relief for now....I was sure we were going to lose him in the off season.