Middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu followed Walter Jones to season-ending injured reserve this week. The Hawks sent Tatupu to Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham for a second opinion on his torn pectoral muscle, and the famous surgeon agreed Tatupu required surgery.
So the man in the middle is now David Hawthorne. A Texas native who played for TCU, Hawthorne expects to have about 35 friends and family on hand Sunday at Dallas.
At least this time there’s a glimmer of good news tucked into the mess that has become the ‘09 season. Tatupu’s roster spot is expected to be filled by cornerback Marcus Trufant, who will make his season debut in Dallas.
Former Husky RB Louis Rankin was promoted to the active roster.
The last time former UW running back Louis Rankin was seen on a football field, he was blowing through the Seahawks’ secondary as the Raiders’ fourth-string running back in a preseason game in August.
Obviously he impressed someone on the Hawks sidelines. He was scooped up by Seattle and stashed on the practice squad when Oakland released him Sept. 30. However, practice squad players can sign with another team any time if it’s to the 53-man roster. The Hawks apparently thought someone was sniffing around and made a preemptive strike by signing Rankin to the roster Wednesday.
Rankin won’t be active for Sunday’s game in Dallas, but don’t be surprised if he gets a chance to see the field the second half of the season. The running game has been a major disappointment and if Seattle falls out of playoff contention, players like Rankin and Justin Forsett will see more snaps because Julius Jones and Edgerrin James certainly aren’t part of the long-term answer.
Anthony Heygood once dominated against Michigan ... we swear.
For those of you PartyHawks.com loyalists, you know we give you the skinny on even the most random additions to the Hawks’ world.
And with that, we present Anthony Heygood, this week’s tackling dummy … err, practice squadder extraordinare.
How “little known” is Mr. Heygood? Glad you asked. This is how little known he is:
The undrafted rookie out of Purdue was cut by Carolina’s practice squad.
NFLDraftScout.com ranks more than 8,000 prospects all the way out until 2013. Yes, we had Heygood ranked (No. 476 overall), but he wasn’t among the more than 400 player our scouts provided analysis on for last year’s draft.
TSX keeps a database on ALL player news across teams – literally thousands of players and notes every month. More than a half-million since 2001. Exactly ZERO on Heygood before Wednesday.
So what are we trying to say? Don’t order that custom Heygood alternate green jersey just yet. But if you do, make sure to tell the customer service lady this is the linebacker Anthony Heygood, lest she get him confused with someone else we’ll never hear about again.
Walter Jones' season officially ended Sunday. Did his career, too?
It hardly came as a surprise when Walter Jones‘ named appeared on the transaction chart today as going on Injured Reserve. When he was forced to stop practicing two weeks ago it became readily apparent that the two surgeries on his knee since December hadn’t corrected the problem.
What we didn’t know is that a kidney condition prevents Walt from taking anti-inflammatory medication. Ouch.
So while Walt vowed to go through months more of rehabilitation – and potentially a third surgery – he has to be considered a longshot to play in 2010. One of the best left tackles to ever play the game and arguably the Seahawks’ best all-time player, you have to admire Jones’ determination to attempt a return at this point in his career.
He has nothing left to prove, and this isn’t a playoff team next year – or most likely next year, either. Will he return? That’s anyone’s guess. But to anyone who wonders just how valuable Jones is – watch Damion McIntosh protect Matt Hasselbeck’s blind side on Sunday. Or ask Shaun Alexander.
If you were holding out hope left tackle Walter Jones would play this season, it’s about time to exhale.
Coach Jim Mora said on Monday that at some point the team will have to decide whether to put Jones on injured reserve. With so many injuries on both sides of the ball, Seattle can’t afford to carry Jones on the roster much longer if he’s not going to be able to contribute.
And reading between the lines, Mora doesn’t sound real optomistic that Jones will see the field this season.
Damion McIntosh is expected to start at left tackle in Dallas
“You hate to, with a guy with Walt’s ability, stature, what he’s accomplished and how hard he’s worked. You want to give him the benefit of every doubt. And you want to give him a legitimate chance to get out here,” Mora said. “But there is a point when you just have to say, ‘Is it going to happen, or isn’t it?’”
Damion McIntosh, picked up off the scrap heap two weeks ago, is expected to start Sunday. He’s fifth in line behind Jones, Sean Locklear (questionable, ankle), Brandon Frye (out, shoulder) and Kyle Williams (demoted to practice squad).
So the Hawks are thisclose to being done for 2009. Of course, the tailgating will go on no matter what happens after the bye. Another thing to look forward to is a pair of first-round picks next April.
No one expected the Hawks’ own pick to be higher than Denver’s when Seattle traded a second-round pick last April for the Broncos’ first-rounder next year. But Denver’s 6-0 start might be the only thing more disappointing than the Hawks’ 2-4 beginning.
Regardless, Seattle will have a pair of first-round picks to help start the retooling project. Offensive line, running back, quarterback, cornerback and safety … all are fair game. Here’s one look at who the Hawks might consider.
LB David Hawthorne takes Lofa's spot in the middle.
Sifting through the sea of bad mojo for the Seahawks right now, there are few things to look forward to. Topping the list is the return of cornerback Marcus Trufant and weak-side linebacker LeRoy Hill after the bye week.
Trufant hasn’t played all season and missed most of the offseason with a bad back. He won’t be ready to step into the starting lineup, but with perennial disappointment Kelly Jennings recovering from two injuries of his own, Trufant brings needed depth. Hill hasn’t played since injuring his groin in the season opener.
Hill will play alongside David Hawthorne, who takes Lofa Tatupu’s spot in the middle for the foreseeable future. After originally being labeled out for the season, Tatupu has a chance to return after a few games with his pectoral muscle being partially – but not completely – torn.
Not many highlights of Seattle’s 41-0 win over Jacksonville made the national hightlight reels, but fullback Owen Schmitt became a YouTube sensation with his pre-game routine of smashing his helmet into his forehead.
Schmitt was seen bleeding profusely from his forhead, but told the Seattle Times that his routine is over. “It gets me fired me up,” Schmitt said. “Just something I’ve done. I don’t know why.”
You know things are bad when your third-string left tackle goes on injured reserve in mid-October. So with Brandon Frye heading to injured reserve with a neck injury, the Seahawks scrambled to add depth by signing Damion McIntosh.
Who’s Damion McIntosh? Glad you asked.
He’s a long-time veteran who has played in 111 games for the Chargers, Dolphins and Chiefs. He has always been a guy teams try to make a starter because of his ideal frame for the position – 6-feet-4 and 330 pounds. But he lacks quick feet and never developed into anything more than an above average reserve. And the 2000 third-round pick couldn’t even make the Chiefs’ final roster this year, which says plenty.
He’s a good pickup at this point in the season considering Seattle’s current predicament along the offensive line. But he hardly solves the significant concern of how to protect Matt Hasselbeck’s blind side. Expect the Seahawks to continue to rely on a lot of quick, underneath passes because the protection breaks down too quickly.
When my buddy Matt called last Friday to argue that Matt Hasselbeck shouldn’t play against the Jaguars, my response was, “You’re probably right, but he has to play because the season is toast if they lose and it won’t matter when he does come back.”
So we all gasped when he ran play-action on the first play of the second drive and went sliding out of bounds on his chest. Hasselbeck jumped up and ran back to the huddle to prove to Jacksonville that he was fine. Fine or not, he showed exactly how much better this team is with its starting quarterback. (Side note: One of my favorite football-isms is “Everyone’s favorite player is the backup quarterback … until he has to play.)
The season was saved – albeit very momentarily – on Sunday. A great, sunny, food-up-the-wall tailgate (PHOTO ALBUM)was followed by a stressless blowout. Of course, the Hawks were down to their fourth-string left tackle in the first half, and even he was playing with a knee sprain. And next week’s tailgate will be in the 50s with rain and the prospects of a long afternoon watching the Cardinals roll up and down the field.
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So the Hawks are thisclose to being done for 2009. Of course, the tailgating will go on no matter what happens after the bye. Another thing to look forward to is a pair of first-round picks next April.
