Herndon did his part

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, October 2, 2005

LANDOVER, Md. – Kelly Herndon couldn’t have picked a better time for his first interception in a Seattle Seahawks uniform.

But he could have picked a better result.

Herndon’s interception with 49 seconds left in regulation put the Seahawks in a perfect position to score the game-winning points. When kicker Josh Brown missed a field-goal attempt as time expired, and the Washington Redskins went on to win 20-17 in overtime, Herndon was left to wonder what could have been.

“I want it to feel good, but it doesn’t matter,” Herndon said. “It gave us a great opportunity, but we didn’t get the win. And that’s all that matters.”

The Seahawks had just tied the score at 17 on a Darrell Jackson touchdown, and Herndon kept the momentum when he got his hands on a ball that went off the fingertips of Redskins running back Clinton Portis. Herndon returned the ball to the Washington 33-yard line, but Brown missed the potential game-winner two plays later.

Whether Herndon would even be able to play was a big question last week. He suffered a neck stinger in a win over Arizona eight days ago and was experiencing headaches late in the week.

His presence was welcomed Sunday, not only because of the interception but also because starter Marcus Trufant had to be helped off the field early in the first quarter after making a tackle. Herndon worked in Trufant’s place until the veteran cornerback returned at the beginning of the second quarter.

No respect: Washington’s offensive game plan focused on several Seahawks defenders but did not seem to account for rookie middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu.

The USC product made them pay for it, notching six tackles in the first quarter alone. Although Washington eventually made an adjustment, Tatupu finished with a team-high 10 tackles and his second career sack.

“Maybe they just overlooked me because I’m a rookie,” Tatupu said. “I don’t know what it was. If you go unblocked, you’ve got to make the tackle. I was just trying to do my job.”

Tatupu’s efforts also were noticed on special teams, where teammate Craig Terrill gave him an assist on Terrill’s block of Nick Novak’s first-quarter field goal attempt.

“I had a good push,” said Terrill, who batted down the kick with his left hand. “I had Lofa behind me pushing me, and I hit the (offensive lineman) just right. I got in there and was able to get a hand on it.”

Familiar matchup: Redskins cornerback Shawn Springs did a decent job when covering Seahawks go-to receiver Darrell Jackson.

But that’s to be expected, because they were teammates for four years in Seattle.

The only two times Springs allowed Jackson to catch the ball, he immediately made the tackle short of the first-down marker.

“He’s a smart guy,” Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said of his former teammate. “He knows stuff about NFL offenses. He plays well in their scheme.”

Jackson, who missed Friday’s practice while getting his knee X-rayed, saw coverage from several Washington defenders but put up decent numbers. He caught seven passes for 55 yards and a touchdown.

Not in the game plan: Staring at a fourth-and-1 on what could have been their final drive of the game, the Seahawks converted in an unconventional way.

Hasselbeck pumped in Jackson’s direction, then tucked the ball in and ran 8 yards toward the open area where Jackson took out his defender.

While it looked like a perfectly drawn-up play, coach Mike Holmgren was unwilling to take any credit.

“I never design anything for (Hasselbeck) to run,” Holmgren quipped.

Game of chess: When two of the winningest coaches in NFL history do battle, the head games are almost as fun as the action on the field.

Washington’s Joe Gibbs predictably ran the ball as often as possible, but the Seahawks countered him with a defensive package that featured three safeties (Ken Hamlin, Michael Boulware and Marquand Manuel) and only one cornerback.

Gibbs adjusted to that defense with a passing game that relied on play-action rollouts on about a third of quarterback Mark Brunell’s 36 passes. Both of the Redskins’ touchdowns came on play-action passes.

Rally cry: Sunday’s game saw something that has become a rarity of late: a Seahawks comeback.

But the Seahawks’ fourth-quarter rally wasn’t enough in the end. Seattle has now lost nine times in a row when trailing at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The last time they came back to win in the fourth quarter was Sept. 21, 2003, when they scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to rally from a 23-10 deficit against St. Louis at Qwest Field.

He’s all thumbs: Redskins right tackle Jon Jansen had to play the game with casts on both arms to protect two broken thumbs.

But Jansen did a nice job of containing Seahawks defensive end Bryce Fisher, who led Seattle with three sacks coming into the game but did not get to Brunell at all Sunday.

Quick slants: Brunell was the second consecutive former Holmgren quarterback to start against the Seahawks. Brunell and Arizona’s Kurt Warner, who started against Seattle eight days ago, were teammates with Holmgren’s Green Bay Packers in the late 1990s. … With Seahawks receiver Peter Warrick inactive because of a groin injury, cornerback Jimmy Williams returned punts Sunday. Williams did not make much of an impact, with his lowlight coming on a punt he fielded at the Seattle 10 and got driven 3 yards backward. … Washington is now 3-0 for the first time in 14 seasons. … The Seahawks have now lost nine of their past 10 games east of the Mississippi, which includes three losses to the Redskins.