Chancellor has surgery; Seahawks FA pitch

Seahawks SS Kam Chancellor had hip-labrum surgery earlier this year, but it was not considered a major repair. The story was reported last week by ESPN.com. GM John Schneider was reluctant last week to verify the story, but the Seahawks confirmed the news to media outlets Tuesday.

Chancellor has had labrum problems before, and was limping at the end of the Super Bowl Feb. 2. No recovery timetable has been disclosed. It was a labrum surgery that was responsible for WR Percy Harvin needing four months of recovery in 2013, but reports are that Chancellor’s problem aren’t as severe.

A March surgery would leave Chancellor ready for the start of training camp in late July.

Seahawks free agent recruiting brochure

As was discussed in a column here the past week, the Seahawks have had great success in the undrafted free agent market, finding numerous productive players after drafts have concluded.

They are proud enough to turn the record into an asset — they have created a impressive, data-rich brochure that will be sent to prospective signees and their agents immediately after they express interest in coming to Seattle. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport obtained a copy, the PDF of which can be found here.

“We wholeheartedly believe in competition in all aspects of our program, and the only way to compete is to show it on the field,” Carroll writes in an introduction. “We’re dedicated to giving all of our players a look to find out who they are and what they’re all about so we can field the best team possible.”

Included is a table that shows the Seahawks led the NFL in total offensive and defensive playing time by undrafted rookies at 36.2 percent. Green Bay was second at 33.2 pecent. The league average was 23.5 percent.

The Seahawks were also second in the NFL in the number of draftees released in their rookie seasons, the point being that the Seahawks are unafraid to admit quickly their mistakes and let competition, not draft status or pedigree, determine who gets roster spots.

Schneider said head coach Pete Carroll recruits the talent pool of undrafted free agents as he did high schoolers for his previous job at USC. The effort is only likely to increase as the Seahawks are forced to pay more for their established veterans such as Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman and Russell Wilson.