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Free Agency began as of 1 March & the Hawks were very active
with their first signing being DE Patrick Kearney from Atlanta. Kearney fits
the team guy mould that Ruskell insists on & showed this by hanging out with
Lofa Tatupu immediately after signing & then pitched to potential signee
Deon Grant on a plane trip.
Former Jacksonville Free Safety Grant duly put pen to paper shortly
afterwards & was soon followed by fellow safety Brian Russell from
Cleveland.
The Seahawks also signed veteran Tight End Marcus Pollard to a one year deal
as a free agent. Guard Floyd Womack re-signed with the team for one year.
New arrivals inevitably mean that someone is headed out of the door & those
players are Grant Wistrom, Jerramy Stevens & Ken Hamlin.
Wistrom was reportedly asked to restructure his contract but declined to do
so. You may recall that when Wistrom was signed many of the local media felt
that the Hawks had overpaid him to ensure he put pen to paper.
The Seahawks had already decided to part ways with troubled tight end
Jerramy Stevens before he continued to misbehave by being arrested in
Arizona for drink driving. If there were any lingering thoughts that maybe
there was a way back on a 1 year deal then they went as soon as news of the
arrest broke though best to remember he has not been convicted of anything
as yet.
With two new Safeties on the roster Ken Hamlins’ time is in Seattle has come
to an end. From a personal point of view I’ll be sad to see The Hammer
depart particularly as he showed amazing determination & resilience to make
it back onto the field of play. Sadly he seems to have lost the edge he once
had & once you lose that you cannot expect to stay in a Seahawk uniform for
long. Dallas have given him a chance so good luck to him as a Cowboy.
One other potential leaver is Darrell Jackson. The oft injured wideout is
attracting the attention of both San Francisco & New Orleans with a second
round pick required for his services. The team have stated they would still
like to retain the former Gator on the roster if no suitable offer was
forthcoming.
The rehabilitation on Matt Hasselbeck's shoulder is going well & Hasselbeck
is on schedule for August Training Camp. Hasselbeck was blighted by injury
during 2006 enduring a sprained right knee plus minor fractures in the index
& middle fingers of his left hand.
Former Texans QB David Carr is scheduled to visit Seattle as a free agent.
His potential visit is causing a bit of a stir in Seahawk world. He would be
welcomed with open arms by many fans particularly because of Hasselbecks
absence last year.
The Hawks were awarded a sixth round compensatory draft pick for this year
as they lost more Free Agents than they signed following the 2005 season.
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