Seahawks want to absorb Lynch's entire cap hit next season

Following the retirement of running back Marshawn Lynch, the Seattle Seahawks would like to get his cap hit off their books as soon as possible.

Lynch has yet to officially file his retirement papers as he enjoys post-football life, but Seahawks general manager John Schneider wants him to put pen to paper sooner rather than later.

The Seahawks have the ability to either take on all of Lynch's remaining cap hit next season or split it over the next two seasons, as long as Lynch files his retirement papers by a June 1 deadline.

"It’s basically like a credit card, like you want to pay off your credit card as you go," Schneider told KJR-AM 950 on Tuesday, according to the Seattle Times. "So like with us, if we place him on reserve/retired (by June 1) then we accept that cap hit this year, and we would rather do that than do it after June 1."

Schneider said absorbing Lynch's entire hit in 2016 is "exactly" what the Seahawks would like to do.

Now that Seattle has completed their draft and aren't expected to add any more major pieces, Schneider has a better idea of how his salary breakdown will work for 2016 and feels it's best to get Lynch's money off the books.

"That’s the situation for us where we would rather pay as we go," Schneider said. "So we would rather do it right now."

Lynch will clear up $6.5 million of his $11.5 million total cap hit for 2016 once he officially retires, leaving $5 million of dead money to count against the Seahawks' cap.

While it's still possible for Lynch to return to football, his former coaches and teammates in Seattle are convinced there will be no more "Beast Mode" sightings on an NFL field.