Seahawks’ Mora looking for a few good ‘dirtbags’

RENTON — For now, the Seahawks will hope a shuffle on the offensive line can help turn things around for a struggling offense.

The long-term solution? Bring on some “dirtbags.”

In one of his more entertaining press conferences of the fall, Seahawks head coach Jim Mora first announced a change to the line: rookie Max Unger, previously the starting right guard, will take over at center, and that Unger’s old job will be split between former center Chris Spencer and Mike Gibson, a second-year player who so far has not been active for a game this season.

Mora started the press conference explaining the move (more on that later) but it was when he was talking about the attitude he’s looking for from his offensive line things really started to get interesting.

“If you’re going to be a good offensive lineman I think you have to be a little bit of a — can I say it? — you’ve got to be a little bit of a dirtbag. Not as a person, but on the football field. Because in the pit, in the pit where all that stuff goes down. Man if you don’t have some frickin’ toughness, you’re going to fail, you know? You’re going to fail.”

Mora made sure later to point out that the dirtbags he is looking for should only be dirtbags from snap to whistle, and not in their off-field lives.

The changes Mora announced did not include Sean Locklear, but Mora said he is looking for a lot more from his left tackle.

“I want to see him take a right end and keep him away from our quarterback for the entire game,” Mora said. “That’s what I want to see. I want to see him, when we run the football, knock someone on their ass. When we run the football away, I want to see him cut somebody down. That’s what I want to see. I want to see some nastiness.”

Locklear said he isn’t surprised that Mora has had strong words for the line and the entire team since Sunday’s blowout loss in Houston.

“He’s upset,” Locklear said. “He’s angry. Rightfully so. From the opening snap we got embarrassed.”

As for those changes, it is no surprise that Spencer lost his job at center. Mora was critical of Spencer, as well as the entire line, after Sunday’s loss. That game featured three fumbled exchanges and several other bobbled snaps as Spencer spent the day snapping the ball left handed because of a broken right thumb.

Mora said on that day that changes could be coming, and he confirmed it Wednesday.

“We think that eventually he’ll be a very good center in this league and rather than wait until the offseason to make that move we’re going to do it right now,” Mora said of Unger, the team’s second-round draft pick in April. “Chris Spencer is going to play some right guard along with Mike Gibson, who we are going to get into the rotation. Mike has shown to be at least through practices and meetings and being around this team to be a guy that deserves an opportunity and once again we want to see what he’s capable of, so we will split reps there with Chris and Mike. We think that Chris potentially could be a very good guard as well.”

Unger, a center his last two years at Oregon, was hardly celebrating after moving back to his old position, particularly because it came at Spencer’s expense.

“It’s an opportunity, yeah, but at the same time I started however many games at right guard and I definitely feel the best there,” said Unger, who has started all 13 games at guard, but split time between guard and center in preseason games. “Having one week to prepare isn’t exactly what I wanted. No one really wanted it to go down exactly like this, but it’s what we have to do.”

Gibson was drafted by Philadelphia in the sixth round out of California last season, but spent the year on injured reserve after having shoulder surgery. He started the season on the Eagles’ practice squad before the Seahawks signed him in October. Gibson has yet to play in a NFL game, but his play in practice has apparently been impressive enough for him to move past Mansfield Wrotto and Steve Vallos, both of whom have started games at guard this season.

“Toughness,” Mora said when asked what he liked about Gibson. “Physical strength, energy, grit, smarts, great attitude, excellent work ethic.”

The toughness and grit Mora sees in Gibson is something he’d like to see more of from his team. While he twice went out of his way to defend his predecessor, Mora also acknowledged that the Seahawks haven’t had the best reputation around the league when it comes to toughness.

“I don’t think any of us would venture to say or be brave enough to say that Mike Holmgren wasn’t about toughness, because he is and he was and he will be for always,” said Mora, who coached against the Seahawks twice while he was the head coach in Atlanta. “You have to be very careful when you sit in my shoes and you say they weren’t tough. I know this though: there are teams out there that say if you walk into Seattle and punch them in the face, they won’t react. I know that’s what I always said. I know that’s what Mike Singletary said on Saturday night before we played them two weeks ago. I don’t think that’s true, and we’re going to work hard to make sure that it isn’t true.”

That toughness the Seahawks are looking for extends well beyond the offensive line, Mora said.

“It’s needed everywhere,” he said. “I’d like a whole team of nail-eaters.”

Burleson out

Nate Burleson has been ruled out for this week because of a high ankle sprain suffered in Sunday’s game at Houston, though Mora said the team has not decided yet whether to shut the wide receiver down for the remainder of the season. Deion Branch will take over Burleson’s spot, and rookie Deon Butler will become the third receiver, with Ben Obomanu becoming the fourth receiver.

Curry, Hasselbeck practice

Linebacker Aaron Curry, who had to be carted off the field after suffering a hip pointer on Sunday against Houston, was able to practice on a limited basis. Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, who sat out last Wednesday because of a sore shoulder, which he then aggravated in Sunday’s loss, practiced fully.

Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more Seahawks coverage, check out the Seahawks blog at heraldnet.com/seahawksblog