By Scott M. Johnson
Herald Writer
KIRKLAND – To say Matt Hasselbeck doesn’t have the typical NFL body would be an understatement. It didn’t help matters that he had to spend five months without lifting a single weight.
Things got so bad in January that his younger brother, Tim, told him he looked like “a really fat cross country runner.”
“That,” the Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback said, “sent me a message that I had to change that after the season.”
Hasselbeck is finally back in the weight room after losing most of his muscle over the course of the 2001 season. Shoulder and groin injuries precluded him from lifting a single weight between Nov. 11, when he originally separated the shoulder in a loss to the Raiders, and April. Now Hasselbeck is back in the weight room, slowly trying to tone himself back into shape.
“I’m obviously not as strong as I want to be,” he said after Wednesday’s minicamp session. “I’m probably as strong as I was my freshman year in college, which is embarrassing. But at least I’m building up and improving.”
Hasselbeck, who will enter training camp as the No. 2 quarterback behind Trent Dilfer, is on a weight program that consists of light weights and high repetitions. He came to the Seahawks last year able to bench press 225 pounds 16 times, but has been reduced to pressing two 25-pound barbells under his current program to protect the shoulder.
“It’s discouraging that I got that way,” Hasselbeck said, “but I’m definitely stronger now and really on the road to being back to normal.”
As for the injuries, Hasselbeck’s groin is healed, while his shoulder is still on the mend.
“It really doesn’t bother me,” he said of a non-throwing shoulder that did not require surgery. “But the big question mark won’t be answered until I have (players the size of) Chad Eaton fall on me. There’s only one way to find out.”
Swallowing their pride: Finding work wasn’t a problem for free agents Doug Evans or Brandon Mitchell. Evans was among the league leaders in interceptions while playing for Carolina last season, while Mitchell was a starting defensive tackle for the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots.
Yet the Seahawks’ two veteran free agents are fighting for playing time in Seattle, rather than spending the 2002 season in places where they would have been guaranteed starting spots.
“I’ve always said that you can’t give up opportunities just because of pride,” Evans said. “Pride can sometimes hurt you more than it can help you.”
Evans ranked third in the NFC last season with eight interceptions, yet the cornerback opted to join the Seahawks without any promises of being a starter. He is currently listed as the fourth cornerback, behind Ken Lucas, Willie Williams and injured Shawn Springs.
A former Green Bay Packers starter, Evans welcomed the opportunity to play under head coach Mike Holmgren again.
“I had the opportunity to go to some teams that might not be playoff teams,” he said. “I’m at the stage in my career where I’m trying to get another ring, and I think I had a better opportunity here.”
Mitchell took a similar gamble in signing with Seattle. After he helped lead the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl, Mitchell went into free agency and was offered a starting job at defensive tackle by as many as 10 teams. He opted instead to sign with the Seahawks, who promised him nothing more than the chance to compete with Antonio Cochran for a starting job at end.
“There’s a lot of things about this team that are the same things I saw from my team last year,” Mitchell said. “They work together and work hard. It’s great. … There were a couple other opportunities, but I really truly wanted to be here.”
Welcome back: Linebacker Anthony Simmons returned to the team Wednesday after missing the first two days of minicamp while attending classes at Clemson University in South Carolina.
Simmons is trying to earn his undergraduate degree in marketing to fulfill a promise he made to his family. He’s still got more than 30 credits to go, meaning Simmons is still a few summers away from earning his degree.
“It’s hard,” he said, “but I’ve just got to chip away at it.”
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