Seahawks notebook

Published 11:12 pm Monday, July 30, 2007

KIRKLAND – During his first NFL season, Seattle Seahawks punter Ryan Plackemeier had to take a lot of good-natured teasing about a lot of things. He was, after all, a lowly rookie last season. And as a punter, he had to take his share of abuse about not being a real player.

While Plackemeier took all of it in stride, there was one description that ruffled his feathers a bit. With a listed weight of 235 pounds on his 6-foot-3 frame, Plackemeier heard his share of talk about being overweight.

“I don’t know if it was an insecurity thing, but it was always in my mind,” Plackemeier said Monday. “People would talk about me being the biggest punter in the league, and it was always something I had to think about.”

And so Plackemeier spent a good part of his offseason doing something about it. After altering his diet and living a more active lifestyle off the field, he has already shed 10 pounds and hopes to take off five more before the start of the 2007 regular season.

“To do what I do, and to do it at the top level, you want to be in good shape because the season’s longer,” said Plackemeier, who ranked fourth in the NFL in punting average (45.0 yards per attempt) as a rookie.

Plackemeier said two of his main dietary changes were to cut down on carb-filled potatoes, especially late at night, and to switch from two-percent to fat-free milk. The Bothell resident also started riding his road bike along the Burke-Gilman trail in order to get more exercise.

A spring marriage also helped Plackemeier’s activity level in that his wife of three months has persuaded him to get out of the house and go on long walks.

All in all, he’s feeling better – both physically and mentally.

“This year, coming in and knowing where I need to be, I can just concentrate on kicking,” he said. “Last year I was thinking about losing weight, going out and shedding two pounds and all this stuff, and now I can come in and relax and not worry about it. That’s the biggest change for me. It’s just out of my mind now.”

Aching bodies: Coach Mike Holmgren said that defensive back Jordan Babineaux is expected to miss “three or four weeks” with a bone bruise in his right knee. Babineaux suffered the injury during the first practice of training camp Sunday morning, and he got the results of X-rays back Monday.

Offensive lineman Floyd Womack also sat out Monday’s practices because of a hamstring injury.

“It shouldn’t be a lengthy thing,” Holmgren said, “but a lot of (injury) things have happened his way, so it doesn’t take much. He had two (knee) surgeries (in the spring), so we had him on a limited schedule anyway. He should be back for the fourth preseason game; this should not change that target date.”

Sad news: About an hour before the official news came down of Bill Walsh’s Monday death, Holmgren was asked to comment on his former boss.

Holmgren said that he was forever grateful to Walsh for giving him his first opportunity in the NFL as an assistant with the San Francisco 49ers. He also saw Walsh as one of the true pioneers of the game.

“I always thought that he looked at the game differently as a coach,” Holmgren said after Monday’s morning practice. “He just looked at how to put everything together and how to do it differently.

“I always said that he was an artist and all the rest of us were blacksmiths. We were pounding the anvil, while he was painting the picture.”

Walsh lost his battle with leukemia on Monday at the age of 75.

Holmgren, who met with Walsh before the San Francisco-Seahawks game last November, added: “I’m glad I had a chance to visit with him recently.”

Holmgren was not the only member of the Seahawks’ organization to work under Walsh. Defensive assistant Ray Rhodes once served on Walsh’s staff, while defensive line coach Dwane Board was both a player and an assistant coach for the 49ers. Defensive assistants Jim Mora and Bruce DeHaven were on the 49ers’ staff while Walsh worked in the front office of the team.

“He not only had a great influence on the game, but he had a great influence on many people in this league, myself being one of them,” Mora said in a statement released by the team. “He will be truly missed by everybody.”

Offensive reaction: Patience not being one of his virtues, Holmgren lost his temper on the second day of training camp.

He snapped at veteran guard Chris Gray for a false start, groaned over a few interceptions and dropped passes, and finally called his offensive players together at the conclusion of Monday’s morning practice for a stern talking-to.

“I just wanted to emphasize a couple things with them that I don’t think we’re doing,” Holmgren told the media a few minutes later. “I wanted to break their habits early.”

Holmgren’s ire carried over from last season, when the Seahawks were flagged for too many false-start penalties. Of the 94 penalties called on Seattle in 2006, there were 27 false starts.

“We were a more-penalized team than any of my teams ever,” said Holmgren, whose team’s 94 penalties actually matched the total from the 2005 Super Bowl year. “Part of that was because of false starts. I think it is inexcusable, and it is a lack of concentration. It can get you out of the starting lineup quickly.”

The offense was much sharper during the afternoon practice.

“I thought guys came out in the afternoon, and the effort was awesome,” quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. “We were still making mistakes, but the effort was there. We played way, way better in the afternoon.”

Quick slants: After the morning practice, Holmgren lit a fire under wide receiver D.J. Hackett by telling the media that his starting spot was in peril. Hackett responded by being the best player at Monday’s afternoon practice, with a diving catch in the end zone after a 40-yard pass from Hasselbeck. … The most impressive defensive play of Monday’s practices came from defensive lineman Brandon Green, who snuffed out a screen pass to Shaun Alexander and made a juggling interception. … The Seahawks are scheduled to put on pads for the first time today. “(This) morning, we’ll know a little bit more about this team,” Alexander said.