Reports indicate Marshawn Lynch, Seahawks close to finalizing deal, but Lynch's agent denies it's done

Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com is reporting that Marshawn Lynch and the Seahawks have agreed to a new contract extension worth $12 million in the first year and $9 million in the second, and JLC expects the deal to be formalized in the coming days. La Canfora also noted that the Seahawks are aware Lynch may retire after 2015.

This report was poo-pooed by Lynch's agent, Doug Hendrickson, who tweeted that "contrary to reports, there is no Marshawn Lynch deal."

So, we wait. And, what do we take of this? Whether or not Lynch accepts the deal is apparently still up in the air (as Lynch's agent tries to get his client the max amount of money he can, I imagine), but right now it's looking like there's some consensus on the approximate monetary value of the Seahawks' offer. Earlier on Saturday, Yahoo Sports!' Rand Getlin gave nearly the same dollar amount as La Canfor in another report.

The Seattle Seahawks have offered running back Marshawn Lynch a multi-year deal that would pay between $11 million and $12 million during the first year and $9 million during the second of what could end up being a three-year deal, according to multiple league sources.

Lynch's agent, Doug Hendrickson, and Seahawks general manager John Schneider met Friday night in Indianapolis, where the NFL scouting combine is being held. While the two sides are close on the framework for a deal, it's still not clear whether Lynch is inclined to accept it.

So, again, nothing in stone right now, but it does seem clear that Marshawn is set to get a big raise, should he decide to play in 2015. My gut (for what that's worth... probably not much) is that Lynch will play, and that he's using the time-crunch pressure to make a decision to leverage the Seahawks for the highest dollar amount and guarantee he can get. It's a game of chicken.

For now, Lynch remains an extremely important piece of the puzzle and they want to get this deal done so they can formulate their Free Agency and NFL Draft plans.