SEATTLE – The undersized rookie stood like he was eight feet tall. The converted safety pumped out his chest like a proud father. And the loan officer was walking around like someone had just handed him a pile of money without need for reimbursement.
The Seattle Seahawks’ cornerbacks, who were expected to be the weak link of the team, had reason to be confident Saturday night. After helping to shut down Dallas Cowboys stars Tony Romo and Terrell Owens, Seattle’s corners felt like they’d proved the doubters wrong.
“Everybody was doubting us,” said Kelly Jennings, a rookie first-round pick whose slight stature has earned the nickname Slim. “I might be a smaller guy, but I knew what I was here to do. I put that on my shoulders and did what I had to do.”
Jennings saw most of his action against Cowboys receiver Terry Glenn, who caught just four passes for 41 yards. One of those receptions led to Jennings’ most important play: a forced fumble that eventually resulted in a Seahawks safety.
Teammate Jordan Babineaux, the converted safety, had an even taller task when asked to contain the 6-foot-3, 224-pound Owens. Babineaux – at 6-foot, 200 pounds, he’s got some size of his own – frustrated Owens by bumping him at the line and taking him out of his game. Owens finished with two receptions for 26 yards.
Jennings and Babineaux were starting because of injuries to teammates Marcus Trufant, Kelly Herndon and Jimmy Williams. Things got so bad that the Seahawks had to turn to two cornerbacks who they signed off the street: Pete Hunter and Rich Gardner.
Both players saw extensive playing time in Saturday’s 21-20 win, but it was Hunter who had the biggest impact. The 26-year-old loan officer recovered a fumble and knocked down the final hail-mary pass to secure the win.
“A lot of guys are on the streets right now who have the ability to play,” he said. “I guess my prayers were answered.”
An ex-Cowboy, Hunter was living about a mile away from his former team’s practice facility when the Seahawks called him on the morning of New Years Day. Later that night, he flew to Seattle and signed a contract the next day.
“It’s a tough pill to swallow,” Hunter said of being out of football. “That’s why I had to get my hands in different stuff (he’s also training to become a border patrolman) to get my mind off football.
“I had too much time on my hands. I drove myself crazy. I wasn’t sleeping. I wasn’t really eating. I just wanted to play.”
On Saturday, a full year after his last regular-season game, Hunter was back doing what he loves to do.
“Gardner and Hunter, they both thanked me (after the game) for giving them the opportunity,” coach Mike Holmgren said. “I thought it was kind of cute. I said: ‘Thank you, too.’ It’s a two-way street.”
While the Seahawks were basking in their defensive performance, the Cowboys’ Owens seemed frustrated by his team’s inability to test the raw cornerbacks.
“Everybody knew they had some corners who hadn’t played in a while, some guys they got off the streets,” the receiver said. “For whatever reason, we didn’t take advantage of those opportunities.”
Missing hands: The cornerback position was not the only one hurting Saturday.
The Seahawks entered the game with five wide receivers but finished with just three. Darrell Jackson, who did not practice last week because of turf toe, played most of the first quarter before succumbing to the injury.
“I was going to push through it a little bit; I’ve been hurt before,” Jackson said, adding that he hopes to play in the Seahawks’ next game. “It just came down to the toughness factor. The pain finally kicked in, and I needed to be smart about it and shut it down.”
D.J. Hackett hurt his ankle in the third quarter and did not return, leaving Seattle with only Bobby Engram, Deion Branch and Nate Burleson.
The team added rookie Ben Obomanu from the practice squad on Friday, but he was not active for Saturday’s game.
Gambling man: Holmgren went away from his conservative nature by going for it on three fourth-down plays Saturday. He was successful on two of them.
“It’s sudden death, and it’s a playoff game, and we were in pretty good position,” he said. “I don’t just do it haphazardly. I looked at the score and sensed how the game was going, and I thought we had a chance to get those.”
The only one that didn’t work out was a fourth-and-goal from the Dallas 2-yard line with 6:43 remaining in the game. Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck ran a play-action rollout but eventually threw a desperation pass toward tight end Will Heller when no one got open.
Bad timing: After the Seahawks gained momentum with a third-quarter touchdown, Dallas return man Miles Austin took the ensuing kickoff 94 yards for a TD of his own. That gave the Cowboys a 17-13 lead.
“That took a lot of wind out of us,” Seahawks special teamer Marquis Weeks said. “People don’t realize how big special teams are, but they can change the game. That could’ve really changed the game for us, but we were able to bounce back.”
Seneca time: For the second postseason in a row, quarterback Seneca Wallace caught a pass.
He started the game and caught a 6-yard pass on the opening play. It marked the second reception of his career, as he caught a pass in the NFC Championship game last year.
“It’s one-and-done in the playoffs, so you’re going to try to do anything you can to win the game,” Wallace said.
Historical win: By beating the Cowboys, the Seahawks became the first defending NFC champion in 10 years to win a playoff game the following year.
The last team to do it was Holmgren’s 1997 Green Bay Packers, who went to their second consecutive Super Bowl after that season.
Quick slants: Running back Shaun Alexander aggravated his foot injury in the fourth quarter but returned two plays later. Both Alexander and Holmgren played down the severity of the injury Saturday night. … Defensive end Bryce Fisher, who had four sacks all season, got two on Saturday. … Seahawks defensive tackle Craig Terrill, who is out for the year after suffering a knee injury last month, sang the national anthem before Saturday’s game. … The Seahawks handed out lime-green gloves to fans, in reference to the catching gloves worn by receiver Deion Branch.
Herald writer Rich Myhre contributed to this report
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