KIRKLAND – After spending a year as Kyle Vanden Bosch’s mentor, Grant Wistrom might feel a little bit of envy for the Tennessee Titans defensive end lately.
While Wistrom has just two sacks for the Seattle Seahawks this season, his former University of Nebraska teammate is having the best year of his professional career. Vanden Bosch’s 121/2 sacks rank second in the NFL, a half-sack behind the league-leading total of Oakland’s Derek Burgess.
“I couldn’t be happier for the guy,” said Wistrom, who was a senior at Nebraska when Vanden Bosch was a freshman. “He’s busted his butt every day. He’s been a hard-working guy since he got to Nebraska, and he had a tough run of luck (with injuries) when he got to the NFL.
“Now things are going his way, and I think it’s great because it just shows that good things can happen if you’re going to work hard for it.”
The 27-year-old Vanden Bosch had missed almost half of his first four NFL seasons due to injuries, but he’s come into his own this season as a member of the Titans. The former Arizona Cardinal has more than doubled his career total of five sacks in a single season.
While very few people knew who Kyle Vanden Bosch was before, they certainly know now.
“I knew I could be a good player, but I never expected to be the kind of player that teams would scheme for or have to account for on pass downs,” he said during a conference call with Seattle media on Wednesday.
Vanden Bosch, who had 13 sacks during his career at Nebraska before the Cardinals selected him in the second round of the 2001 draft, credits his former Cornhuskers teammate with helping him develop his skills.
“(Wistrom) taught me how to play the game, how to play every down, the type of effort you need to play with,” said Vanden Bosch, who will line up across from right tackle Sean Locklear on Sunday. “He is a guy, more than anybody, that I have tried to emulate.”
Vanden Bosch has actually looked better than Wistrom at times this season. But the Seahawks are happy with the production of their $33 million man, despite his low sack total.
When asked earlier this week about Seattle’s improved defensive play, coach Mike Holmgren said: “You start with having Wistrom healthy the whole year. He was hurt last year and we missed him; we really did.”
Jack’s back: Wide receiver Darrell Jackson took part in his first full practice since late September on Wednesday.
Jackson was working with Seattle’s No. 1 offense and is expected to start Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.
“Jack looked fine,” offensive coordinator Gil Haskell said of Jackson after Wednesday’s practice. “He’s going to be a big asset for us because of his quickness and speed. If (defenses) try to play him one-on-one, they can’t do it.
“But you’ve got to give a lot of credit to (D.J.) Hackett and Joe (Jurevicius) because they really filled in well.”
Jackson has been out 10 weeks following knee surgery.
Hunter suspended again: Reserve offensive lineman Wayne Hunter, who was suspended for the 2004 season opener, has been given another one-game suspension by the NFL this week. Hunter will not be eligible to play in Sunday’s game against Tennessee.
Both of Hunter’s suspensions stem from a 2003 incident in which he was charged with domestic abuse. The latest came after the conclusion of court proceedings involving that case.
In addition to the one-game suspension, Hunter will lose an additional game check. The two-week total will cost Hunter 11.8 percent of his salary, or just under $45,000.
Hunter, 24, has played in just one game during his entire career. He has not suited up for a game yet this season.
Seahawks can clinch: While Seattle can clinch the NFC’s No. 1 seed on Sunday, the team won’t know until later that night.
All it would take to secure the top seed and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs would be a Seattle win over the Titans and a Chicago loss. Unfortunately for the Seahawks and their fans, the Bears play Atlanta on Sunday night, so any possible celebration would have to wait until the evening.
Quick slants: The start time for the Seahawks’ Jan. 1 game at Green Bay has been changed. Originally a 3 p.m. kickoff, the game is now scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on the West Coast. … Seattle is one of five teams in NFL history to record back-to-back wins by 38 points or more. The last one to do it was the 2002 Kansas City Chiefs, who were the first team in 29 years to accomplish the feat. … The Seahawks rank fourth in the NFL in points allowed (16.2 per game). … Jackson is one receiving touchdown away from tying Joey Galloway for the second-most in franchise history (37). Steve Largent holds the record with 100. … The Seahawks signed offensive lineman William Henry to the practice squad.
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