Seahawks finally back up all that Seneca talk

By Chris Cluff  |   Sunday, September 30, 2007  |  Comments( 0 )

Seattle Seahawks
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They finally did it.

And whether they do it again or not, the Seattle Seahawks have given their upcoming opponents something to think about. His name is Seneca Wallace.

After talking for years about using the backup quarterback in other roles, coach Mike Holmgren did it Sunday in the Seahawks' 23-3 win over the San Francisco 49ers. Wallace was in for a handful of plays, catching an 18-yard pass from Matt Hasselbeck, running an end around that lost a yard and throwing incomplete to the end zone on a reverse pass play.

This is the kind of stuff fans had been hoping to see from Wallace since he was drafted in 2003. He has not had much opportunity to play elsewhere because he has been so busy learning Holmgren's complicated West Coast offense and, the past two seasons, Holmgren has not wanted to risk losing his backup to injury.

The most significant action Wallace has had anywhere other than quarterback was when he caught a pass in the NFC title game in 2005. Then last year, Holmgren's point of needing a healthy Wallace was proven when Hasselbeck missed four games with a sprained knee and Wallace was needed to start.

So why all of a sudden did Holmgren feel comfortable using Wallace as the multipurpose player he has long eschewed?

Perhaps the coach finally feels good about the quarterback situation and risking Wallace to injury. David Greene never developed enough for Holmgren to trust him running the offense, so the Seahawks cut him before this season. But, a week later, they traded for Charlie Frye.

When that happened, Holmgren said that might eventually lead to Wallace seeing the field.

"My hope has always been that I could bring in a third quarterback who I felt could come in and play, I mean really play, in which case that would free up Seneca to do some other things," Holmgren told reporters after the deal was made earlier this month. "Now, maybe we are in that situation, but it won't be for a while. It will not be for a while. So we just have to wait."

Well, "a while" and the "wait" turned out to be no longer than two weeks because Frye apparently has picked up the offense very quickly.

"I believe he could go into a game and play, and play pretty well," Holmgren told reporters after the game.

The coach also said Wallace promised he wouldn't get hurt.

Whether Holmgren plans to make regular use of Wallace or was just giving upcoming foes something extra to worry about remains to be seen.

Either way, the Seahawks finally did it.
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About Chris Cluff

Chris Cluff spent 10 years as an editor and sportswriter for The Seattle Times. He was a key figure in the newspaper's coverage of the Seahawks, particularly during their Super Bowl run in 2005. He also has written two books on the Seahawks: "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Heart-Pounding, ...
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