KIRKLAND — Mr. Mom has found a new gig.
Jeff Robinson is putting his plans as a stay-at-home dad on hold — for now.
The Seattle Seahawks’ new long snapper had been spending his days taking care of an eight-month-old daughter, Mae Louise, while wife Laura got a new business off the ground from their Queen Anne home.
Robinson, 37, jumped at the offer to play for the Seahawks after spending more than two years away from the game.
“This situation was perfect,” said Robinson, a 14-year NFL veteran who last played in October of 2005 and hasn’t snapped in a game since 2004. “It wasn’t (going to be for) a full season, just a short stint, and there was a need (on the Seahawks part). I could stay at home. There were a lot of positives.
“I just think it’s cool to get to play for the Seahawks at the end of my career. Hopefully we can make a long run into January.”
And after that?
“Hey,” Robinson said, “I’m just trying to make it to Sunday.”
A native of Spokane, Robinson retired from football in the middle of the 2005 season, during which he played tight end for the St. Louis Rams. He retired and moved to Seattle, where his wife recently started a preventative health and wellness business.
Robinson tried out with the Seahawks on Tuesday morning and was signed later that day, replacing Boone Stutz as Seattle’s long snapper. Now he’s balancing work and fatherhood while his wife prepares for the official opening of a South Lake Union branch in January.
“There are a few adjustments we’ve made,” Robinson said on Wednesday. “Her mom’s in town, so we’re doing OK.”
Part of the Seahawks’ interest in signing Robinson came from a familiarity that special teams coach Bruce DeHaven had with him. Robinson was the Dallas Cowboys’ long snapper for three seasons while DeHaven was an assistant there.
“When I was coaching him, I thought he was the best snapper in the league,” DeHaven said on Wednesday. “That was a couple years ago, and he’s 37 years old now, so he might not be what he once was. But he’s still a pretty good snapper.”
Robinson admitted that his post-football life hasn’t left much room for snapping, but he’s excited about his new gig nonetheless.
“It felt good to be out there,” he said after Wednesday’s practice. “I need to shake a little of the rust off and see if we can give it a go on Sunday.”
Where’s Tapp? Heading into the Oct. 28 bye week, defensive end Darryl Tapp was on top of the world. He was coming off the finest game of his career, having piled up four sacks in a win over the St. Louis Rams, and he already had 5½ through seven games.
Since that game, Tapp has only one sack in six games. The second-year player has just three tackles in the past two weeks, and Tapp saw his playing time significantly decrease in Sunday’s win over Arizona.
“As a competitor, you get frustrated,” said Tapp, who was not on the field in nickel situations Sunday.
“Everybody out here wants to be on the field all the time. But it’s something you’ve got to work through.
“(Patrick) Kerney’s having a hell of a year, Julian (Peterson) is being Julian, so I’ve got to find my niche and work in where I’m asked.”
The obvious explanation for Tapp’s decline in production would be an increase in opponents’ attention after the breakout game against St. Louis. But he said that hasn’t necessarily been the case.
“Everybody’s game-planning for something,” he said. “I don’t see how people aren’t game-planning Kerney (who has nine sacks in the past four games). And if they are, he’s still destroying them.
“But that’s the way the game is. I just have to find a niche and work with it.”
Familiar face … to some: Carolina’s roster includes cornerback Ken Lucas, who began his career in Seattle.
Not that many of the current Seahawks would know.
The only two defensive starters left over from Lucas’s final season in 2004 are cornerback Marcus Trufant and defensive tackle Rocky Bernard.
“They pretty much got rid of all the malcontents — quote-unquote,” Lucas said during a Wednesday conference call. “Those are the only two guys that I still recognize on that defense.
“But they have put together 11 guys on their defense that play well together.”
Trufant honored: For the second week in a row, a Seahawk has been named as the NFC’s defensive player of the week. Trufant joined linebacker Lofa Tatupu in earning those honors Wednesday.
Like Tatupu, Trufant had three interceptions in a game. They mark the first NFL teammates in 35 years to record three-interception games in back-to-back games, according to a release sent out by the league on Wednesday. The last duo to turn the feat were Buffalo’s Marv Matuszak and Carl Charon in 1962.
The last time two Seahawks defenders were named back-to-back players of the week was in 1997, when linebacker Chad Brown and safety Darryl Williams took honors.
Two other Seahawks were among the nominees for this week’s awards: quarterback Matt Hasselbeck (NFC’s offensive player of the week) and defensive end Patrick Kerney (NFC’s defensive player of the week).
Quick slants: Several Seahawks rested injuries Wednesday, but coach Mike Holmgren said that the only two unlikely to play in Sunday’s game are cornerback Josh Wilson (quadriceps) and wide receiver D.J. Hackett (ankle). … Holmgren said Wednesday that Derek Rackley was among the snappers who tried out this week. Rackley spent the first five games of this season as Seattle’s snapper but was released when the team signed Boone Stutz on Oct. 9. … As a vested veteran, Robinson could make almost $136,000 in base salary for the final three games, plus playoff bonuses.
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