CHENEY – The least favorite moment of Marcus Trufant’s practice day coincides with the first chance to display his greatest asset.
Immediately after the players stretch out each morning, Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator John Marshall leads the defense through a pursuit drill that shows off the players’ speed and tests their endurance.
“It’s one of those things you don’t like, but you really need to do,” said Trufant, who is widely regarded as the fastest player on Seattle’s defense. “… It makes you a little tired, but I think it’s good work.”
Watching the pursuit drill, which sends all 11 defenders in a sprint toward the sideline, is as good a chance as any for onlookers to see the speed of the Seahawks defense.
And, oh, how much speed there is.
“That’s the thing our defense is predicated on,” middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu said. “Like they say: Speed kills.”
The 2005 Seattle defense was probably the fastest of the Mike Holmgren era in Seattle, and the 2006 version is even swifter. The additions of veteran linebacker Julian Peterson and rookie cornerback Kelly Jennings, along with the return of starting free safety Ken Hamlin, have brought more speed to the unit.
“We’re a faster defense now,” Marshall said. “Overall – defensive line, linebacker and in the secondary – we’re faster.”
Marshall doesn’t like to wait very long to see that speed at practices.
He said the reason for running the pursuit drill so early in practice is to get the players “lathered up” and ready to practice hard.
“I want them to get into their second wind during practice as fast as they can,” Marshall said. “So a lot of what we do in drills is to push the players out of their comfort zone.”
The drill leaves many players bent over at the waist because of its intensity and repetition. Linebackers coach Zerick Rollins simulates a snap, then points the ball toward the side of the field where the players are supposed to run. If any of the defenders jump too soon or don’t show enough hustle, they have to do it again.
“Nobody’s really showing off” his speed, Trufant said. “It’s one of those drills where you’re just trying to get on and off as quick as you can. And if you do it right, you won’t have (to do) extra ones.”
Like Trufant, linebacker Julian Peterson has mixed feelings about the drill.
“We don’t really like it because it’s right after we stretch, so we’re not really warmed up yet,” Peterson said. “They want us to run it full tempo, but we’re like: My body’s not ready.”
The drill, which Marshall also included while handling coordinator duties last season, is designed to create a swarming defense that shows off its speed. Marshall said the intention is to remind players to go all-out on every play, even if the ball is on the other side of the field.
“If you hustle, and you’re really going after it, you never know,” Marshall said in explanation of the drill. “Just give yourself a chance to line up again and play good defense.”
The drill paid immediate dividends at Saturday’s intrasquad scrimmage, when Peterson showed off his speed in chasing down running back Marquis Weeks from behind 26 yards past the line of scrimmage. Three plays later, the offense failed on a fourth-and-goal, which made Peterson’s play all that much more important.
“You never know,” Marshall said. “The teams that you say they’re lucky, it’s not that. They’re the teams that play hard and make their own luck.
“It’s a mindset, a defensive team thing. It’s who we are. It’s who we want to become. Are we there yet? No. But that’s who we need to become: a defense that uses its speed.”
When Marshall first arrived in Seattle as a linebackers coach in 2003, there seemed to be one key ingredient missing from the defense.
“It was fairly obvious that we needed more speed,” he said. “And the attitude of using your speed had to change. And it has.”
With Peterson, Tatupu and second-year player Leroy Hill, Seattle has one of the fastest linebacking corps in the NFL. The secondary is also swift with Trufant, who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.38 seconds before the 2003 NFL draft, and Jennings, who recently ran the 40 in 4.47.
“Anytime you have great team speed on defense, you have a chance to be much better,” Holmgren said. “Defense is very much about speed – reaction and speed. We have good speed on defense.”
From the early moments of practice until the 11-on-11 drills at the end, Seattle’s defense has been showing off its speed a lot as of late.
“They’re quick,” running back Shaun Alexander said. “I think that it’s one of those things where you practice against someone every day, and you’re not sure if they’re that fast or if they just understand your tendencies.
“They’ve really challenged us this year, better than any other year in my career.”
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