With Tarvaris Jackson unable to sign until tomorrow, Charlie Whitehurst was the only veteran quarterback at today’s practice. Once Jackson — and who knows, perhaps another quarterback we don’t know about yet — shows up, Whitehurst will be in a battle to take over the starting job that Matt Hasselb
eck held down for a decade.
Here’s what Whitehurst had to say about that battle:
“It’s an opportunity obviously, it’s one that I’m going to attack and give it everything I’ve got. I want to be the quarterback here. I know there’s going to be competition, but I’m confident I can make it happen and lead this team to a heck of a season.
“Really the mindset is pretty similar. Every day we’re out here, every player should be competing for a starting spot. Obviously I think I’ve got a better shot this year than I did last year, but the mindset is the same. Every time you take the field, you’re competing.”
Whitehurst on the addition of Sidney Rice:
“That’d be awesome. I’ve heard those reports. I played against him in college. He’s a heck of a football player, so we’d be lucky to have him.”
As for the past few days with Hasselbeck leaving, then the addition of Jackson, Whitehurst said it’s been crazy.
“It’s amazing how fast it’s happened, for sure. I was expecting anything to happen at this position. … (I) didn’t really know what to expect, I was open for anything, and yeah, it’s moved pretty fast.”
Whitehurst said he hasn’t yet talked to Hasselbeck, but the the two have traded messages.
“I just thanked him for being a good leader and a good guy to be under for a year. He’s a heck of a guy, people are going to miss him around here for sure.”
As for missing OTAs and minicamps and having a new offense, Whitehurst conceded that puts him a bit behind.
“It’s full speed right now, and we’ve got a lot of catching up to do. You’ve got to work harder than everybody else.”
Asked about Darrell Bevell’s offense, Whitehurst said:
“It’s similar terminology, it’s a West-Coast scheme, but it’s definitely different. There are different plays to learn, different procedure and all of that. It’s a new offense, so we’ve got our hands full, but we’re going to learn it. We’ll be all right.”
And finally, on potentially filling Matt Hasselbeck’s shoes:
“I’d love to be a starter here, and I told him if I am, I’ve got huge, huge shoes to fill, for sure. The only way I know how to approach it is to come out here and work. I know Matt, I know his legacy here, nobody is going to forget that, but you try to make your own.”
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