RENTON — Luke Willson went home to Ontario, Canada during the Seattle Seahawks’ bye week, but the tight end knew he wasn’t on vacation.
By the time Willson and the rest of his teammates were set free last week, he already knew that Zach Miller needed ankle surgery, which meant that for the time being, Willson is Seattle’s starting tight end, beginning with Monday’s game in Washington.
“I went home — it was the first time I was home for my dad’s birthday in about seven years — I went home, laid low, kind of refocused, and I’m ready to go now,” said Willson, a fifth-round pick in 2013. “… I was home taking care of myself, kind of mentally getting ready.”
Willson knows he has big shoes to fill replacing Miller, but feels like he’s ready, both because he started two games last year in place of an injured Miller, and because he feels like he has grown a lot since his rookie season.
“It’s one of those things where, when you’re the backup guy, you kind of always want to prepare for it,” Willson said. “I’ve been here practicing and we rotate so it’s one of those things where, I don’t really feel like I’m entering new territory.”
Willson, who is lighter but much faster than Miller, was drafted to be a receiving threat, yet he has just one catch through three games, but he’s not concerned about his lack of production this far.
“Some on the games have worked out that way,” Willson said. “I’ve just got to be patient. I always feel like my time’s coming. That’s the thing about our offense; it’s really never one guy. One day it’s Percy, one day it’s Doug, one day it’s Kearse, that’s just kind of how we operate as an offense.”
And ultimately, with Miller out, Willson’s pass catching will be less important than his ability to block both in the running game and in pass protection. Willson credits Miller with helping him improve significantly, and adding a bit of weight in the offseason helped as well.
“I think from when I first got here I’ve made a lot of strides,” Willson said of his blocking ability. “For me, it’s one of those things where I’ve just got to run my feet after contact. I feel like I’ve really improved and I’ve done a pretty good job.”
Of course Willson won’t be asked to fill the void alone. Cooper Helfet, who spent last year on Seattle’s practice squad, should play a role this week, and the Seahawks can also use rookie tackle Garry Gilliam at tight end, the position he played for three years at Penn State before switching to offensive line as a senior.
“He’s a guy that has really been working hard,” Willson said of Helfet. “… He’s able to do a lot of things so it’ll be kind of cool to see Coop out there really contributing.”
As for Gilliam, he actually ran routes as a tight end in Tuesday’s practice, and says he’s ready to go back to his old position if that is what’s needed Monday night.
“Actually, pretty good,” Gilliam said when asked how it went dabbling at his old position Tuesday. “I didn’t feel like I was away that long. Obviously I weigh a little bit more, but I still have the quickness to run the routes they want me to do.”
Gilliam said that when the Seahawks talked to him during the scouting process, they saw his future at tackle, but also discussed the idea of him being a tight end in a pinch, and now he might get the chance to show that versatility.
“Obviously tackle is going to be the future, but I’ll help the team out right now,” he said.
But while Gilliam is ready for whatever is asked of him, and while Helfet will certainly play a role, the bulk of the responsibility will fall to Willson until Miller is able to return.
“He’ll be back this year,” Willson said. “But I’ve got to hold down the fort until he’s back.”
Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
