Cover-2 continues to baffle Seahawks

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, October 22, 2006

SEATTLE – For a few fleeting seconds, the Seattle Seahawks seemed to have solved all the Cover-2 woes that have plagued them for more than a year.

After Matt Hasselbeck called a perfect audible to combat a blitz by throwing a quick pass over the middle, it appeared that the Seahawks had come up with the tonic for their most visible ill.

But Hasselbeck’s 72-yard, catch-and-run pass to Darrell Jackson in the first quarter proved only a temporary cure. Minnesota’s Cover-2 defensive scheme baffled the Seahawks once again, following in the footsteps of teams like Detroit and Chicago.

Jackson’s long catch, which took advantage of a defense that often uses its two safeties to play double coverage on the outside receivers, is the only touchdown Seattle has scored against a Cover-2 scheme all year. Chicago and Detroit kept the Seahawks out of the end zone, and Minnesota was almost as unforgiving.

While wide receiver Nate Burleson admitted last week that the Seahawks are still trying to figure out how to attack the defense, tight end Jerramy Stevens said after Sunday’s loss that the Cover-2 scheme wasn’t the problem.

“It doesn’t have anything to do with that specifically,” Stevens said. “They’re the No. 2 defense in the league right now, so obviously what they’re doing works.

“… You’ve got to give them credit. They came in with a great game plan, and they executed it.”

Seattle has averaged 9.3 points per game against Cover-2 teams this season, as opposed to 31.0 in its other three games. The Seahawks are 1-2 in games against Cover-2 teams while going 3-0 against other schemes.

Hutch speaks: Vikings guard Steve Hutchinson was silent for most of the week leading up to the game, but he made himself available to reporters afterward.

Hutchinson laughed off the boos that followed him around Qwest Field in his first game back since leaving the Seahawks in a highly publicized free-agent defection.

“All of the boo-birds were out, all of them, the entire game,” Hutchinson said. “I wasn’t sure what to expect. I didn’t expect it that bad and for that long. They really hung in there with it. Even at the end of the game, they were still yelling.”

Hutchinson came out on the field a few minutes early and spent a good half hour catching up with former teammates and Seattle coaches.

After the game, he was in good spirits after a blowout win.

“It is special, I’m not going to lie,” he said. “Everything has been (talked about) in the media for the entire offseason. This was the showdown that had been made up by you (reporters), actually. As much as I tried to avoid all of the hoopla about it, it’s over.”

And as of Sunday night, so was the booing.

“I had kind of prepared both ways,” Hutchinson said of the reaction he expected. “I was hoping for one way and got the other. (It’s) a little easier to swallow when you come out of here with a win.”

Chester who? With 169 rushing yards, Minnesota’s Chester Taylor became just the second opposing running back to go over 100 yards against a Seattle defense over the past two seasons.

No opponent has done it in a regular-season game since the New York Giants’ Tiki Barber ran for 151 on Nov. 27, 2005, making Taylor the first in 10 games.

“He’s one of the better backs we’ve faced,” Seahawks defensive tackle Marcus Tubbs said of Taylor, who has five career 100-yard games and three this season. “You don’t hear his name much, but he showed how good he is.”

Taylor’s most impressive run came on a 95-yard touchdown. Tubbs stuffed him at the line of scrimmage before Taylor bounced outside and ran down the left sideline.

It was the longest run ever allowed by a Seattle defense and the longest in Minnesota history.

“Sometimes plays break down; fortunately, it worked out for us, though,” Taylor said. “You have to be patient.”

The right stuff: Seahawks linebacker Julian Peterson has spent a good part of the season lining up at defensive end, but until recently that was on the left side of the line.

Peterson started to see some time on the right side of the line in last week’s win over St. Louis, and he saw most of his d-line action there on Sunday.

“It’s been pretty successful,” said Peterson, who had two sacks Sunday to give him a team-high six on the season. “They want to move me around so (the offense) won’t know which side I’m on.”

Stevens debuts: Tight end Jerramy Stevens’ 2006 debut was uneventful, with his only reception getting called back following an instant-replay challenge.

“I felt good,” said Stevens, who missed the first five games following a pair of offseason knee surgeries. “My knee’s not stiff or swollen, and I wasn’t tired out there. I just wish I could do more.”

Stevens took part in about a half dozen plays in the first half, but he saw extended playing time in the second half.

“I was hoping I could get out there, make a play to spark us, but it goes like that sometimes,” Stevens said. “I’m glad I got extra reps in the second half. It was a positive for me.”

Itula Mili started the game at tight end for the third time this season.

Changing colors: Seahawks wideout Nate Burleson, a former Viking, wore a purple shirt to Sunday’s game. But he said it wasn’t meant as a shot at his former team.

The O’Dea High School product actually wears the colors of the opposing team before every game.

“My tailor came up with” the idea, Burleson said. “My wife (Atoya) thought it would be pretty cool, so I went along with it.”

Burleson didn’t make much of an impact against his former team, as he was on the field for only about a dozen plays and did not catch a single pass.

Quick slants: The Seahawks have yet to allow a first-quarter touchdown at home. They have outscored their opponents 41-3 in first quarters at Qwest Field, but have been outscored 68-34 the rest of the way. … Since 2003, Minnesota receiver Marcus Robinson has averaged 2.7 receptions, 39.6 yards and 0.4 touchdowns per game. But in two meetings with the Seahawks, he has 11 receptions for 208 yards and five touchdowns. … During one span in the second and third quarters, the Seahawks threw nine passes without a completion.