Published: Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Don’t count Seahawks' Wilson out
Cornerback with big-play ability but lacking in size finds himself second on the depth chart again as he battles for a starting spot
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Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald
Cornerback Josh Wilson celebrates after sacking New York Jets quarterback Brett Favre in the fourth quarter last season. Wilson is trying to win a starting job this season.
RENTON — When Ken Lucas was signed by the Seahawks this offseason, he was immediately penciled into the starting lineup at cornerback ahead of Josh Wilson.
And Lucas may be the frontrunner to start at cornerback opposite Marcus Trufant — that is if Trufant’s back gets better anytime soon — but don’t expect Wilson to slip down the depth chart without putting up a fight.
“When they bring a guy in, they’re trying to make us all better,” Wilson said. “The best man is still going to play. I’m one of the most competitive guys out here, so whether they bring somebody in or not, I’m always going to try to outplay myself. I’m not really trying to outplay anybody else, I’m trying to outplay myself, and if I can do that, then I hope I can be one of the best players on the team, and that’s what my goal is.”
Besides, Wilson is hardly surprised by the signing. After all, as he points out, Wilson was somebody else’s competition not long ago. A second-round draft pick in 2007, Wilson last year took a starting job away from Kelly Jennings, a first-round pick in 2006.
“It’s not anything like, ‘They brought a guy in, that’s total disrespect,’” Wilson said. “No, it’s just competition, and if they weren’t trying to make this team better, we’d be in trouble.”
Wilson, who started 12 games last season, including the final 10 of the season, has big-play ability — shown by his 75-yard touchdown on an interception last year and an 89-yard kickoff return for a score his rookie season. But at 5-foot-9, his size is a concern for a team that plays in the same division as physical receivers such as Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.
Of course, having the league’s worst pass defense last year isn’t helping anybody’s case in the secondary. But Wilson still thinks he can be an elite corner despite his height and last year’s results, and he plans to use this preseason to show it.
“In football and every sport, whenever you’re the top dog, everybody is going for your head, so there’s always going to be competition whether they bring somebody in or not,” he said. “There’s always somebody competing with you ... I have to compete and show I belong out there.”
And if Trufant, who has been on the physically unable to perform list all training camp, doesn’t return soon, Wilson and Lucas provide a potential starting duo that has starting experience even without the Pro-Bowl player.
“That depth is a great thing to have,” defensive backs coach Tim Lewis said. “I like the mix that we’ve got. The competition has been fierce ... And if you’re going to have a competition, you want a guy like (Wilson) to be a part of it.”
Injury update
Left tackle Walter Jones, who left Monday’s practice early, was out again Tuesday for both practices. The team has not given any update on his condition, but he appeared to be having back problems before ending his day early Monday.
Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck was given the morning practice off, presumably just for rest, but was back for the evening session. Receiver Deion Branch, center Chris Spencer, defensive end Cory Redding, and linebacker D.D. Lewis also missed the morning practice but were back for the evening session.
Missing both practices were receiver Nate Burleson, guard Grey Ruegamer, running backs Julius Jones and T.J. Duckett, cornerback Marcus Trufant, defensive end Lawrence Jackson and kicker Olindo Mare. Ruegamer has an elbow injury and Mare has a sore knee. The team did not list specific injuries for the other players.
Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more Seahawks coverage, check out the Seahawks blog at heraldnet.com/seahawksblog.
And Lucas may be the frontrunner to start at cornerback opposite Marcus Trufant — that is if Trufant’s back gets better anytime soon — but don’t expect Wilson to slip down the depth chart without putting up a fight.
“When they bring a guy in, they’re trying to make us all better,” Wilson said. “The best man is still going to play. I’m one of the most competitive guys out here, so whether they bring somebody in or not, I’m always going to try to outplay myself. I’m not really trying to outplay anybody else, I’m trying to outplay myself, and if I can do that, then I hope I can be one of the best players on the team, and that’s what my goal is.”
Besides, Wilson is hardly surprised by the signing. After all, as he points out, Wilson was somebody else’s competition not long ago. A second-round draft pick in 2007, Wilson last year took a starting job away from Kelly Jennings, a first-round pick in 2006.
“It’s not anything like, ‘They brought a guy in, that’s total disrespect,’” Wilson said. “No, it’s just competition, and if they weren’t trying to make this team better, we’d be in trouble.”
Wilson, who started 12 games last season, including the final 10 of the season, has big-play ability — shown by his 75-yard touchdown on an interception last year and an 89-yard kickoff return for a score his rookie season. But at 5-foot-9, his size is a concern for a team that plays in the same division as physical receivers such as Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.
Of course, having the league’s worst pass defense last year isn’t helping anybody’s case in the secondary. But Wilson still thinks he can be an elite corner despite his height and last year’s results, and he plans to use this preseason to show it.
“In football and every sport, whenever you’re the top dog, everybody is going for your head, so there’s always going to be competition whether they bring somebody in or not,” he said. “There’s always somebody competing with you ... I have to compete and show I belong out there.”
And if Trufant, who has been on the physically unable to perform list all training camp, doesn’t return soon, Wilson and Lucas provide a potential starting duo that has starting experience even without the Pro-Bowl player.
“That depth is a great thing to have,” defensive backs coach Tim Lewis said. “I like the mix that we’ve got. The competition has been fierce ... And if you’re going to have a competition, you want a guy like (Wilson) to be a part of it.”
Injury update
Left tackle Walter Jones, who left Monday’s practice early, was out again Tuesday for both practices. The team has not given any update on his condition, but he appeared to be having back problems before ending his day early Monday.
Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck was given the morning practice off, presumably just for rest, but was back for the evening session. Receiver Deion Branch, center Chris Spencer, defensive end Cory Redding, and linebacker D.D. Lewis also missed the morning practice but were back for the evening session.
Missing both practices were receiver Nate Burleson, guard Grey Ruegamer, running backs Julius Jones and T.J. Duckett, cornerback Marcus Trufant, defensive end Lawrence Jackson and kicker Olindo Mare. Ruegamer has an elbow injury and Mare has a sore knee. The team did not list specific injuries for the other players.
Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more Seahawks coverage, check out the Seahawks blog at heraldnet.com/seahawksblog.
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