RENTON, Wash. -- So much for concern that running back Marshawn Lynch would be absent from the Seattle Seahawks minicamp. Shortly after the first day of minicamp began for the Super Bowl champions on Tuesday, Lynch strolled from the Seahawks locker room with his No. 24 jersey pulled over a hooded sweatshirt. Lynch was just a spectator, spending most of his day chomping on sunflower seeds and chatting with teammates. But he was in attendance, avoiding the potential of being fined nearly $70,000 for skipping the mandatory team workouts. "We expected him to be here and he was here," Seattle coach Pete Carroll said. Reports surfaced last week that Lynch might consider not attending the practices in hopes of getting a higher salary for the 2014 season. Lynch signed a four-year contract before the 2012 season. He is scheduled to make $5 million in base salary this season plus per-game roster bonuses. Carroll declined to discuss any conversations with Lynch about his contract. "There is nothing in our conversations about that, the business side of it that well talk about," Carroll said. "There is no reason to. We havent talked about other guys in that regard so were not doing that now." Lynch was not available to speak as he sat out the practice with a sore ankle, according to Carroll. Lynch had not been present for Seattles organized team activities and because of a sore ankle, Carroll said it would be unlikely his running back would be on the field during minicamp. Seattles plan is to make sure Lynch is healthy for the season opener against Green Bay on Sept. 4, which will be a very light load of carries during training camp and the preseason. Even though the Seahawks staff at various times during the off-season has expressed getting more carries for reserves Robert Turbin and Christine Michael, Carroll reiterated that Seattles run game begins with Lynch. Lynch has rushed for at least 1,200 yards in each of the past three regular seasons. Hes gotten at least 285 carries in each of those three seasons and last season during Seattles title run finished the year with 366 carries combined between the regular season and playoffs. That was the fourth-most combined carries for any running back since 2009. "We have rested him a lot in the off-season. He takes a big pounding during the year. It takes him a long time to get his body back to where he doesnt feel the rigours of the season thats past," Carroll said. "In this case its unique but he is a unique player and he has a unique role on our football team, so we have to do what we have to do to take care of him." Lynch could have faced significant fines if he decided not to attend minicamp, but he has shown previously he does not enjoy losing money through fines. Last season, Lynch begrudgingly began speaking to the media during the playoffs in an effort to avoid hefty fines from the league. That included memorable sessions during Super Bowl week where he answered questions for about 20 combined minutes during three days of league-mandated media availability. "Marshawn has really been the guy for us and we love everything about the way he plays and what he brings to this team. Hes never taken a step backward at any time for us in all the years hes been here," Carroll said. "From the day we went after him and got him we had sights on him becoming the player that he has become and he has never disappointed us. Hopefully hell be really healthy and ready to go at the season start and if we have accomplished that with this off-season that will be very successful for him and for our team." NOTES: LB Bruce Irvin, who had hip surgery in early June, was the only player not in attendance. ... Rookie WR Paul Richardson was a full participant after being limited in recent off-season workouts with a sore shoulder. ... Veteran DT Kevin Williams was a full participant one day after signing his contract with the Seahawks after spending his entire career with Minnesota. Braves Jerseys 2020 .5 million, two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants on Thursday, a deal that covers his final two arbitration seasons. Mike Soroka Jersey .C. -- Duke sophomore Rodney Hood is entering the NBA draft. https://www.cheapbraves.com/1563o-eddie-...sey-braves.html. "Im going to send Webbie a six-pack (of beer) tonight," she said. Webb wasnt sure that would help. "Ill probably drink one and go to sleep," the Australian veteran said. The two players set up a Sunday showdown between former HSBC champions after finishing off their third rounds with identical birdies over three of the last five holes Saturday to separate themselves slightly from the rest of the crowded leaderboard. 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Its up to Shanahan and general manager Dave Nonis to do it, but no clear direction for the organization was spelled out on Shanahans "first day at work." The 45-year-old Hall of Famer has a plan, and though he and Leiweke didnt get into specifics, plenty of changes are expected. "I have some ideas in my head about direction, but I think that at the same time ... those are subject to change," Shanahan said. "I think that its very important for people, especially in sports, to have the ability to evolve and to make changes." Change could come in the form of firing coach Randy Carlyle, whose vision for winning hockey didnt seem to fit with the Toronto roster. And it could come in the form of many different players being on the ice opening night this fall than were around for Mondays locker clean-out. But Shanahan and Nonis insist the immediate job is to step back and make an assessment of where the organization is as a whole. Even though each man called Carlyle a "good coach," its difficult to point to things like identity, culture and character without at least considering the next step. "You all saw the team this year, I think we didnt have the identity," Leiweke said. "I think Randy tried to create the identity. To the guys credit last year, they bought into that, and they took on Randys identity, I dont think that happened this year." Shanahan, who grew up in the Toronto neighbourhood of Mimico and previously worked for the NHL as the director of player safety, is expected to shape this teams identity. Its just not clear how he intends to do that. "Dave and I are going to talk about this thing or were going to talk about our team, were going to talk about how we see the best way to play for our team going forward," Shanahan said. "I think that its important for us to assess what we have here, what we have coming up, and I think thats an organizational thing. It would be presumptuous, it would be premature for me to tell you right now where were going to go." Leiweke would like Shanahan to have the same kind of success Masai Ujiri has enjoyed in his first season re-shaping the NBAs Raptors. Hell be given total authority to not only put his fingerprints on the team but completely revamp, if necessary. "This is Brendans team, its his culture, and at the end of the day he makes all the decisions, and were going to support that 100 per cent," Leiweke said. Of course with Shanahan as president, the Leafs power structure is different. All three men at Mondays news conference insisted the working relationship between Nonis and his new boss would go smoothly. "They will work well together and if we have disagreements, the disagreements will be resolved very quickly within the organization," Leiweke said.dddddddddddd. "This isnt going to tear the organization apart. This is going to make the organization a better place." While Shanahan has the final say, it remains to be seen how the decision-making process will be handled. "Your boss has the final say," Nonis said. "Thats just common sense and its the way things have worked. This isnt a relationship thats going to work that way. This is going to work the way it should work, which is were going to work together to try to find the right answers together." Nonis made sure to point out that, at the end of the day, Shanahan is the boss. And Leiweke made sure to point out that this move was first agreed to last summer and not a "knee-jerk" reaction to the Leafs eight-game slide that caused them to miss the playoffs. This is Shanahans team. And while hes a Hall of Famer with three Stanley Cup rings who spent the past five years working in the league office, its difficult to pin down his philosophy, other than to figure general managers like Ken Holland of the Detroit Red Wings and Lou Lamoriello of the New Jersey Devils have influenced him over the years. Shanahan sounded like a Holland disciple on Monday. "You have to hire good people and you have to let them do their job," he said. "I think you need to step in and help them when they need help. ... Its a great feeling to be a player and be a part of a team, I view management as the same thing. Youve got your hierarchy and your leadership and things like that, but its certainly a team." The team Shanahan is taking over finished the season 2-12-0 to go from a playoff shoo-in to locker clean-out two days after a final loss in Ottawa. Major changes could be coming, but Shanahan wasnt tipping his hand. "I do like a lot about this group," he said. "From an outsider looking in, theres some really good pieces that a lot of teams would covet. ... You start by looking for ways to improve in small increments, and if you have an opportunity to make improvements, you make them." That seems to be Noniss philosophy, too, even while saying the team isnt where it needs to be. Last years trip to the playoffs may have masked some bigger issues, but falling apart so spectacularly isnt likely to lead to blowing up the roster. "When you look back if were taking the appropriate time, were going to see some things that were happy with in this group, too, and you dont want to throw the baby out with the bath water," Nonis said. "Theres quality people and quality players here, and if we want to get better, were going to do a good job of assessing those pieces and keeping the ones that we think can help us long-term." Building a contending team for the long-term seems to be the goal for Shanahan and the Leafs. Leiweke, whose earlier talk about a Stanley Cup parade drew plenty of criticism, talked instead Monday about building a group thatll be in the mix. "To me the most outstanding statistic, if you look at (Shanahans) career, is not the three Stanley Cup rings but in 21 years he made the playoffs 18 times," Leiweke said. "He is a guy thats not just a student of the game and a fan of the game, but hes an architect of the game, and thats what we needed here." ' ' '