Trufant agrees to six-year, $50.2 million deal

KIRKLAND -- Marcus Trufant did not want to leave Seattle. The Seahawks did not want to lose their Pro Bowl cornerback who was coming off a career season.

Both sides got their parallel wish, as Trufant agreed to a six-year, $50.2 million contract late Tuesday night. The club has called a news conference for 1 p.m. Wednesday to announce the deal.

Doug Hendrickson, one of Trufant's agents, characterized the deal as a win-win proposition.

The Seahawks had used their franchise tag on Trufant in February to prevent him from becoming an unrestricted free agent. But the tag carried a $9.465 million tender, which was prohibitive for the salary cap-strapped Seahawks. The long-term deal reduces Trufant's cap hit to $2.5 million this year.

Trufant, meanwhile, is all but guaranteed $28 million in the first three years of the contract.

The deal includes a $10 million signing bonus, but Trufant's base salaries this year and next are $1 million. He also will receive roster bonuses of $7 million next year and $3 million in 2010, a situation that pretty much guarantees his $5.7 million base for that season.

Trufant also will receive a $100,000 workout bonus in each of the six years for taking part in the team's offseason conditioning program.

The total compensation for the first five years ($41.3 million) also puts Trufant in line with the long-term deals signed by the other top-paid cornerbacks in the league -- Nate Clements ($43.2 million) last year and DeAngelo Hall ($43.1 million) this year.

Trufant, who grew up in Tacoma and played at Washington State, was the Seahawks' first-round draft choice in 2003. He had his best season in 2007, intercepting a career-high seven passes in the regular season, adding an eighth in the playoff win over the Washington Redskins and being voted to his first Pro Bowl.