The two biggest names that the Seattle Seahawks added in free agency belong to a pair of running backs — T.J. Duckett and Julius Jones — who have started a combined 65 games at the NFL level.
The Seahawks still have all-time leading rusher Shaun Alexander on the roster, as well as fill-in starter Maurice Morris.
So where does that leave the Seahawks when it comes to fulfilling the need for a halfback?
“You never stop looking for running backs,” team president Tim Ruskell said last week.
And so as the 2008 draft nears, the Seahawks might not be finished fixing a ground game that was grounded for most of last season.
It is conceivable that, should the right player fall to the 25th overall pick, the Seahawks might take a running back in the first round of this weekend’s draft. Chances are, Seattle will address the position at some point in the two-day, seven-round event.
“There are probably some names that have popped up during our meetings in the last two weeks,” Ruskell said when asked about the running back position in the upcoming draft. “(The group of incoming running backs) is a pretty strong.”
Arkansas star Darren McFadden won’t get past the top 5 to 10 picks, while Rashard Mendenhall of Illinois is generally considered a top-15 selection.
After that, the draft might get interesting when it comes to the running back position. Oregon junior and Lacey native Jonathan Stewart is probably the best physical specimen of any running back coming out this year, but a recent toe surgery could affect his draft position. Once considered a possible top-10 pick, Stewart may slide a few slots. And he would be difficult for the Seahawks to ignore should the 235-pound speedster drop all the way to No. 25.
Other runners with first-round ability include Jamaal Charles of Texas and Arkansas junior Felix Jones. Both runners rely on speed and are generally considered as complimentary backs to power runners, which is an apt description of the 254-pound Duckett.
If the Seahawks are patient — they have more obvious needs at tight end, defensive line and wide receiver — there should be plenty of big-name running backs available in Round 2 and beyond. West Virginia’s Steve Slaton, Ray Rice of Rutgers and Michigan’s Mike Hart are among the next tier of running backs, while the later rounds could bring players like Chauncey Washington of USC, Oregon State’s Yvenson Bernard and the University of Washington’s Louis Rankin.
The question of how desperately the Seahawks need a running back is subject to debate. Asked last week about how he expects the free-agent additions of Duckett and Julius Jones to affect the ground game, Ruskell said he was not sure how the carries might get divvied up.
“Coming into a new scheme with a new (running backs) coach, who knows how it will go,” Ruskell said. “We are all in agreement that we like the guys that we brought in and we think they are going to be heavy-duty contributors.”
For now, Alexander remains in the mix. But the 30-year-old running back has all the makings of a June 1 cut: a high cap number (almost $6 million in 2008), a recent history of injuries (a broken wrist and foot in the past two seasons) and dwindling statistics (11 touchdowns in the past two seasons combined). The team has not commented on his future other than to say that Alexander is still on the roster.
Morris also remains on the roster, although his role is still unclear. If the Seahawks find a younger back who can catch passes out of the backfield, Morris becomes expendable.
Jones, who will turn 27 in August, is younger than Alexander but has taken some hits during a five-year career that saw him start 51 games with the Dallas Cowboys. He appears to be the leading candidate to be the Seahawks’ feature back in 2008, but the team might have to look for a long-term solution at the halfback position.
Maybe those roads lead to a falling star like Stewart in Round 1, to a productive college player like Rice in Round 2 or 3, or to a late-round pick.
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