SEATTLE — As dramatic as the peaks and valleys have been during the Seattle Seahawks’ roller coaster ride over the past 12 seasons, they have always had one constant.
Left tackle Walter Jones has been to eight Pro Bowls in his first 11 NFL seasons, and many people believe he’s a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame. Just last week, teammate Leonard Weaver talked about Jones and called him “the greatest tackle to ever play the game.”
So when Jones was in the rare position of watching from the sidelines on Sunday afternoon, the Seahawks’ offensive line sported the look of a rock band without its singer. Like the Rolling Stones without Mick Jagger or Led Zeppelin without Robert Plant.
And wouldn’t you know it? The Seahawks’ linemen played some pretty sweet music without their front man despite a 24-21 loss to New England.
“As a unit, I think we did well,” said guard Floyd Womack, one of only two linemen from Sunday’s game who had a single NFL start coming into the 2008 season.
While Womack and tackle Sean Locklear held down the left side — Locklear moved over from his natural position on the right side while Jones was hobbled by a leg injury — the other three linemen came into the game with a total of seven career starts. T
The only lineman who was left over from the regular-season opener was right tackle Ray Willis, who started the season at right tackle while Locklear nursed a knee injury.
Steve Vallos made his second NFL start at center and Mansfield Wrotto made his starting debut because of a pair of veterans — center Chris Spencer and guard Mike Wahle — who went on injured reserve last week.
Somehow, the makeshift line got the job done. Seattle had 339 yards of total offense, while the only sack allowed came on a blitz on the final offensive snap of the game.
“We’ve got a lot of guys who haven’t played together, but it was a really good learning experience,” Vallos said. “I thought we did well for what we had in there.”
Said Locklear: “Everybody was probably wondering: what’s going to happen? But these guys, Steve in his second game starting and Wrotto in his first ever, they played well — obviously.”
Little guy shines: The Seahawks’ strategy of having Pro Bowl cornerback Marcus Trufant follow wide receiver Randy Moss worked pretty well — at least in terms of limiting Moss.
The plan left diminutive slot receiver Wes Welker to have his way with Seattle’s other cornerbacks, resulting in a game-high 12 receptions for 134 yards.
“He’s going to be the guy running the underneath routes,” Seahawks cornerback Josh Wilson said of the 5-foot-10 receiver. “He’s going to have a lot of catches, but it’s not like it’s anybody’s man. He’s doing the dirty work.
“We have to hit him and knock the ball out. A lot of times (Sunday), we would have a tipped pass, and it always seemed to go to him.”
Moss finished with 56 yards off three receptions. His longest catch, a 33-yard reception on third down in the fourth quarter, came when Wilson was trying to cover him in a zone formation.
“I think we did a pretty good job,” Trufant said of the team’s strategy against Moss. “He’s a big-play guy, and he didn’t get too many big plays today, so that’s what the goal was.”
Of course, Trufant had the most success. While he did get called for a costly pass-interference penalty, he was on Moss during eight other passes in the 6-4 receiver’s direction and only allowed two receptions.
“He did a great job,” safety Deon Grant said. “We trust him. The whole week, we were saying he would get him, and he was out by himself.”
Patriot pain: When it comes to injuries, the Patriots have had the kind of season that only the Seahawks could understand.
Quarterback Tom Brady suffered a season-ending injury in the opener, Pro Bowl safety Rodney Harrison went down a couple weeks later, and the running back position has had so many injuries that a rookie who started the season on the practice squad spent two weeks as the team’s starter.
The Patriots came into Sunday’s game without two defensive starters — Harrison and linebacker Adalius Thomas — and lost three more along the way.
Defensive tackle Vince Woolfork came out of the game due to a shoulder injury in the first quarter. A few minutes later, linebacker Tedy Bruschi suffered a knee injury and was finished for the day. And safety James Sanders hurt his ribs early in the second half and was unable to return.
Ex-Hawk shines: In his first trip back to Seattle to play against the Seahawks, Patriots fullback Heath Evans played a key role.
The former Seahawk helped seal off Seattle linebacker Lofa Tatupu on the game-winning touchdown, a 1-yard Sammy Morris dive on fourth down.
“These guys are fast, moving everywhere, so you just try to hit someone,” Evans said of the touchdown block. “This defense moves well, so it’s hard to get a hold of them.”
Julius Jones sits: For the first time this season, running back Julius Jones sat out the entire game.
Jones was one of three active Seahawks players not to enter the game, joining backup quarterback Charlie Frye and new offensive lineman Steve McKinney on the sideline.
Coach Mike Holmgren said that Jones was not benched but that it was Maurice Morris’s turn to start. Holmgren added that the team wanted to give T.J. Duckett a few carries.
“It just worked out that way, more than anything,” Holmgren said. “Julius could start next week.”
The move had nothing to do, Holmgren said, with Jones’s two fumbles in the Thanksgiving Day game.
Duty calls: Early in the week Junior Seau was at his California home, enjoying his first year of NFL retirement and pretty much just spending his days surfing and being a father.
On Thursday Seau was headed east to join the Patriots, his team for the previous two seasons. And on Sunday Seau was on the field for New England’s game against the Seahawks.
The 39-year-old Seau — he turns 40 next month — did not start against Seattle, but ended up playing most of the game.
“I’ve been playing this game for 19 years,” he said, “so it shouldn’t be a big surprise. The guys did a heck of a job protecting me and doing the things that we needed to do out there, and obviously we came out with a win.”
Asked how he felt afterward, Seau said, “Physically, I will let you know (today). Obviously there is going to be some kind of aches and pains, but that’s expected.”
“He’s a great dude,” said teammate Brandon Meriweather. “With him in the locker room, it just gives everybody a little more energy, a little more momentum. He just played lights-out every play.
“Even though he’s the oldest guy on the team, he still plays with the most energy.”
Quick slants: The Seahawks’ six-game losing streak is the longest of Mike Holmgren’s career and the franchise’s worst since 1992. … The five losses at Qwest Field matches the Seahawks’ most losses in a season since the stadium opened in 2002. During that first season, when it was known as Seahawks Stadium, Seattle went 3-5 at home. … Sunday marked the second consecutive game in which an opposing team was not flagged for a false start at Qwest. Road teams have had just one false-start penalty in the past four games. … Seahawks defensive end Baraka Atkins had the first two sacks of his career on Sunday.
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