Irvin, 30, produced 15 sacks and 10 forced fumbles and didn't miss a game over his two seasons with the Raiders. But that might not be enough to keep Oakland from releasing him, a possibility that Irvin referenced on Twitter last week.
As noted by ESPN Raiders reporter Paul Gutierrez, the four-year, $37 million contract Irvin signed in 2016 calls for him to count $8.25 million against the cap next season. It's structured in such a way that the Raiders would incur no dead money by cutting Irvin, meaning they'd save the entire $8.25 million. So there's some financial incentive for Oakland to move on.
Under this scenario, there would be another benefit to Seattle bringing Irvin back as opposed to signing a free agent who just played out his contract: A player who was released by his most recent team -- known as a street free agent -- doesn't count against a new team's compensatory pick formula. So if Irvin were to be released, Seattle could sign him without sacrificing a 2019 comp pick, which would no doubt appeal to Seahawks general manager John Schneider, assuming the price is right. Seattle doesn't have much cap space to work with -- about $14 million as it stands now -- but Irvin could give them value, since he'd be filling two needs.
