Teammates Again: Bennie Blades Agrees -- Newest Seahawk Is Excited To Rejoin Brother

The contract had been faxed to the Denver law office of Peter Schaffer in the middle of the afternoon. All it needed was Bennie Blades' approval. A page, a phone call, a yes, and the two brothers who once made the Miami Hurricanes hum were united again.

And when free-agent safety Bennie Blades finally agreed to become a Seahawk yesterday, he laughed. "He said it was exceptionally exciting to be playing with his brother," said Schaffer, Blades' agent.

Bennie and Brian Blades have been through so much. Teammates through high school in South Florida. Teammates once more at Miami. Brian the receiver, Bennie the safety. They were together two years ago when their cousin was accidentally shot and killed. There has been so much, good and bad.

Now they are going to be teammates with the Seattle Seahawks.

Bennie, 30, agreed to a three-year contract worth a total of about $3.3 million plus a signing bonus of more than $1 million.

"It helped, obviously, that Brian was here. Obviously, the guys wanted to play together," Seahawk Vice President Mickey Loomis said.

The Seahawks needed experience in their secondary. There was no way they could keep Robert Blackmon, who was demanding more than $1 million a year. Blades, who has played his entire nine-year career with Detroit, can make losing Blackmon sting a little less.

Blades' signing means Seattle has spent more than $35 million in salary and $11 million in bonus money to sign three free agents, all on the defensive side of the field. Linebacker Chad Brown and cornerback Willie Williams are in their mid-20s. Blades, a starter for most of his career and viewed by Detroit teammates as the most valuable defensive player, is more mature and thus may play a more significant role.

Negotiations between Schaffer (also the agent for Chad Brown) and Seahawk Loomis were helped when Blades was willing to make his contract fit Seattle's demands. The Seahawks had close to $1 million left under the salary cap before Blades came to an agreement. His deal will take about $700,000 of that.

Seattle would like to sign Warren Moon to back up John Friesz, but Moon is contemplating an offer of $1.5 million a year from San Diego with the hint of a chance to compete for a starting role. It may be too much for the Seahawks to match, so former Seattle quarterback Dave Krieg was to make a visit today. Krieg played last year for the Chicago Bears and had an offer from Detroit.

Still, it is the defense the Seahawks wanted to improve the most. They expected to lose five starters to free agency. Three of those - Blackmon, linebacker Terry Wooden and defensive end Michael McCrary - would be critical losses.

The signings of Brown, Williams and Blades seem to leave Seattle in a better position. Coach Dennis Erickson believes the defense is faster. Blades is a solid hitter, something Erickson felt he needed in his defense, as well.