July 10th, 2018 
Charles Spooner 
Posted in 
It’s easy to connect the two dots and say, as many do, that Earl Thomas is under contract thus he has an obligation to be at all mandatory Seahawks events.
That includes training camp that begins in 2 1/2 weeks. The three-time All-Pro safety may be for the start of camp what he’s been for every other team event since Seattle last played a game seven months ago: absent. Thomas is protesting not having a new deal beyond his that ends after 2018.
Bobby Wagner outlined why he and some of Thomas’ teammates don’t blame him for skipping out on the Seahawks so far, Gregg Bell of the Tacoma Tribune reports.
Wagner said he understands if the 29-year-old Thomas continues his principled stance of staying away from training camp that begins with players’ reporting day July 26, staying away until he gets top dollar on a new Seahawks deal.
Such is life for players under the NFL’s non-guaranteed contracts.
“You’ve got to do what’s right for you,” Wagner told KJR. “Because at the end of the day, whenever you are done they don’t care about you. You’ve got to get what you’ve got to get while you can. Because as soon as you can’t play… ”
“As soon as you get hurt,” Avril interjected.
“Yeah,” Wagner responded. “As soon as you can’t play and they don’t want you no more, it’s over. So you’ve got to make the best of your opportunity.”
This could be Thomas’ last one to get top-of-the-league money, a deal with tens of millions in guaranteed cash for many years to come.
