CHENEY – The ongoing soap opera that is Seattle Seahawks training camp might as well be called: “As the Linemen Turn.”
Already without left tackle Walter Jones, the Seahawks lost a pair of offensive linemen Wednesday with injuries that aren’t believed to be serious.
Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack, who was replacing Jones as the No. 1 left tackle, was sidelined by a strained left calf. Durable starting center Robbie Tobeck strained his right calf at the afternoon practice.
Womack could miss up to a week of training camp and will not play in Saturday’s intrasquad scrimmage, while Tobeck’s status is expected to be evaluated on a day-to-day basis.
It was an all-too-familiar camp scene for Seattle’s shuffling offensive line, with Matt Hill stepping in at left tackle and Dennis Norman at center.
“You just don’t blink,” offensive line coach Bill Laveroni said. “It’s one of those things. When you have guys missing, then other guys have to step up. We’re so used to that, that it’s an easy adjustment for the individual who has to change (positions).”
Hill, Womack and Jerry Wunsch are among the linemen who have played several positions in the recent camp merry-go-rounds. Seattle selected another versatile offensive lineman, Sean Locklear, in the third round of this year’s draft and is currently playing him at left tackle behind Hill.
Hill started camp as the backup right tackle before making the awkward-but-familiar switch to left tackle following Womack’s injury. He has played both tackle positions before, even if he’s more comfortable on the right side.
“My first year, this would have thrown me for a loop,” said Hill, a third-year player from Boise State. “But now I’m pretty much used to it.”
Hill started one game at right tackle last season while starter Chris Terry was suspended and Womack was nursing a toe injury. Hill was playing the same position at camp until Womack’s calf flared up.
Hill said the difference between right and left tackle is hard for people to understand, and he pointed toward a quote he once heard from teammate Chris Gray to describe it.
“He said, ‘It’s like writing with your left hand if you’re right-handed.’ I think Chris hit it right on the head,” Hill said. “It just feels different. I’ve tried to explain it to my wife before, and she doesn’t get it. When I go back and start to make contact, my first reaction is to move my feet like I was on the right side.”
Jones is still missing because of an ongoing contract dispute that began at the end of the 2001 season. He is not expected to report to camp before the team returns to its Kirkland facility.
Norman filled in at center for Tobeck on Wednesday, but starting right guard Gray can also play the position. It is uncertain whether Tobeck will be available for Saturday’s scrimmage.
Give the defense a hand: Seattle’s defense seemed to have a couple dozen players on the field Wednesday morning.
Cornerbacks, safeties and linebackers were everywhere at once, batting away passes throughout the two-hour session. Things peaked during one 10-minute span at the beginning of 11-on-11 drills.
Anthony Simmons got things started when he knocked a pass away from receiver Jerheme Urban. A couple of plays later, wideout Jason Willis got his hands on a pass over the middle but was immediately stripped by Orlando Huff.
Safety Terreal Bierria broke up a pass intended for tight end Jerramy Stevens, while cornerbacks Marcus Trufant and Brad Franklin also defended passes during the flurry.
The only thing Seahawks defenders didn’t do was intercept a pass, although Ken Lucas and Kris Richard each came close.
Lucas and Trufant had interceptions early in the afternoon practice before the offense started clicking. Seattle’s quarterbacks completed a number of long passes, including two to Willis.
Million-dollar smile: Going through drills this training camp is a bit easier for Seahawks linebacker D.D. Lewis now that he’s no longer carrying around the weight of uncertainty.
Lewis, who came into the league as an undrafted free agent, recently signed a three-year deal that will make him a millionaire.
“It’s given my family more security,” Lewis said. “I’m just really thankful. I thank God, first of all, and I thank the Seahawks organization for what they’ve done for my family. It’s a burden lifted.”
His first plan is to get a house for his family on Seattle’s Eastside. He had been looking to buy in his home state of Texas, but now Lewis and his family are planning a more permanent place in the Puget Sound area.
Quick slants: Cornerback Bobby Taylor took another day off to rest a sore knee. … Quarterback Brock Huard suffered a sore back during the afternoon practice.
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