RENTON — Three voices carried the most weight in Seattle’s locker room last season.
When Matt Hasselbeck, Lofa Tatupu or Lawyer Milloy spoke, their teammates knew they darn well better listen up. They were the veterans with playoff experience, multiple Pro Bowl appearances, and in Milloy’s case, a Super Bowl ring.
Now all three are gone — Hasselbeck to Tennessee, Tatupu released, and Milloy, 37, not in Seattle’s plans — and a big question hangs over the Seahawks’ youth movement.
Who will lead this team?
Sure Pete Carroll is the leader that matters most, but a football team also needs leadership in the huddle and in the locker room. Who will take over for Hasselbeck and Tatupu, longtime captains of the offense and defense, and Milloy, a respected veteran who spent the past two years in Seattle, is a real concern for a roster that has gotten much, much younger in the year and a half that Carroll and general manager John Schneider have been in charge.
“The first thing I said when I walked into the locker room — I saw Justin Forsett and Marshawn Lynch — and I said, ‘There’s a C up for grabs,’” receiver Mike Williams said, referring to the patch worn by team captains. “I kind of gave the edge to Forsett because he helped organize the little offseason minicamp we had. It’s up for grabs. I’d love to be a captain.”
Forsett, who as Williams notes was largely responsible, along with Hasselbeck, for putting together an offseason workout at the University of Washington, thinks it will take a group effort to replace Hasselbeck’s leadership of the offense.
“Guys have to step up,” he said. “The older guys, we have to bring the younger guys up and be the vocal leaders out there, and also lead by example.”
That Forsett, 25, considers himself part of the old guard shows just how young the team has become. Another young player who will be forced to lead is 28-year-old Tarvaris Jackson, who Carroll named the starting quarterback. As the starting quarterback, Jackson will have to take command of the offense even if he is getting a lot of help in that department from players like Forsett and Williams.
“Guys are going to have to take it upon themselves to be a little more vocal,” Williams said. “There are big shoes to fill when you have a guy like Matt and he’s not there, then you have a guy who is younger and doesn’t have the games and experiences and battles on the field under his belt. There will be a lot of pressure on whoever is taking the snaps.”
Another person thrown into a big leadership role, despite being new, is left guard Robert Gallery. The 31-year-old is by far the elder statesman of the projected starting line that features two rookies, a second-year player and a third-year player.
“I’ve been lucky to be under some great veteran guys in my career, and it’s my time to help lead these guys,” Gallery said. “I know this offense, I know what it takes to be good in this system and how you have to play … As a guy who’s been around and played quite a few snaps, when you get to that point you have to be a leader.”
On the other side of the ball, the Seahawks will certainly notice not having Tatupu and Milloy, but Carroll is confident David Hawthorne, who will take over at middle linebacker, is ready to lead. He also praised the leadership from some of his veteran linemen such as Red Bryant and Chris Clemons.
“I’m not worried about it,” Carroll said. “There are a lot of very strong character kids on that side of the ball, particularly.”
The Seahawks will also have veterans on their defense, particularly cornerback Marcus Trufant and linebacker Leroy Hill, but neither in the past has been known for being an outspoken leader like Tatupu and Milloy. And just as Jackson must lead as a quarterback, so too must Hawthorne as the team’s middle linebacker.
“We all just have to step up,” Hawthorne said. “We’re a young group. We have a couple veterans with Trufant and all those guys, but I think it’s an opportunity for a lot of guys to show their leadership ability, like myself … We definitely learned from a great leader.”
A great leader, who like two others, is no longer a Seahawk. Carroll realizes there could be a downside to losing those leaders, but it’s all part of the building process, he says.
“The experienced players do carry something with their value, I totally see it, but in our time in what we’ve done here to make the moves that we’ve had to make,” he said. “That’s just the situation we’re in right now.”
Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more Seahawks coverage, check out the Seahawks blog at heraldnet.com/seahawksblog
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