Seahawks count on newest receivers

Seahawks count on newest receivers
An opportunity is all Koren Robinson wanted the past four months. And opportunities are what Keary Colbert watched dwindle the past two...
By Danny O'Neil
Seattle Times staff reporter


RENTON — An opportunity is all Koren Robinson wanted the past four months.

And opportunities are what Keary Colbert watched dwindle the past two months in Denver.

Well, the Seahawks' two newest receivers are going to get their chances with Seattle. Coach Mike Holmgren made that clear to them the moment they arrived.

"Now listen," the coach said, "As unfair as this may sound, I'm going to push you out on the field."

And off they went on Wednesday, two new receivers running a crossing route as the Seahawks prepare to play the Rams on Sunday. Robinson is trying to make the most of his second chance with the franchise that drafted him, and Colbert is getting a fresh start after failing to catch a pass in the first two games of this season.

Their roles in Sunday's game could mix a little playground into the Seahawks' playbook.

"Hey, you go out, you get open and I'll throw it to you," quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. "It doesn't have to be any more complicated than that."

The situation at wide receiver is as simple as it is dire. The Seahawks needed to make additions after finishing Sunday's loss to San Francisco with three healthy wide receivers, only one of whom had been on the 53-man roster longer than a week.

Last week, the Seahawks turned to the waiver wire, signing Samie Parker and Billy McMullen in hopes of applying a Band-Aid to staunch the bleeding. Parker is already gone, and after a season-ending injury to Logan Payne and a strained calf muscle for Seneca Wallace, the Seahawks had to look for more permanent pieces this season.

"We learned something last week and how we probably have to do this," Holmgren said.

Holmgren said who starts will be based on this week's practices, but that the rotation will include both Robinson and Colbert. Deion Branch's practice participation continued to increase, but Holmgren indicated earlier this week that Branch probably won't be back until October.

The search for viable alternatives led the Seahawks to Colbert, who had unexpectedly fallen out of Denver's receiving rotation, and to Robinson, a familiar face the Seahawks drafted in the first round who has been out of town the past three years.

"I still can play," Robinson said. "Let's not get that twisted."

And he'll have five days' worth of refresher courses on the playbook so he can be ready if his number is called Sunday against St. Louis.

"If I'm up, I hope that I can make a play or two," Robinson said. "Or three. Or four."

Colbert was a second-round draft pick in 2004, chosen by the Panthers out of USC. He caught 32 passes in Carolina last season and signed with the Broncos on the second day of free agency, agreeing to a three-year deal that included a $2.5 million signing bonus, according to The Denver Post.

The Broncos signed Colbert to pair opposite Brandon Marshall, but Colbert's role was gradually eclipsed by rookie Eddie Royal.

"I kind of understand the numbers side of football and how things work out," Colbert said.

The Seahawks traded a conditional draft pick for Colbert, acquiring his contract, which will pay him $605,000 this season and would pay him a salary of $2 million in 2009, according to the salary database of the league's players association.

The Denver Post reported Seattle will give up a fifth-round pick that could become a fourth-round pick depending on Colbert's performance. The Seahawks would say only that it's a conditional pick.

And while Colbert took a step forward in terms of the depth chart, he took a hit in the standings going from the 2-0 Broncos to the 0-2 Seahawks.

"It's so early to really talk about it," Colbert said. "Really, the task at hand is to worry about this week."

And for Colbert and Robinson, that means doing their best to wrap their hands around Seattle's playbook and grasp the new offense.

Notes

• Left tackle Walter Jones did not practice Wednesday because of soreness in his lower back. Jones was hurt when Hasselbeck was sacked in the fourth quarter Sunday and knocked into Jones from behind. Holmgren said Jones will be OK for Sunday's game. Wallace (calf), Maurice Morris (knee) and Bobby Engram (shoulder) have been ruled out.

• Seattle released defensive end Jason Babin to make room for Colbert. Babin was acquired from Houston in exchange for Michael Boulware in 2007. He played two games for Seattle in 2007, added weight in the offseason and had a promising training camp. He was active for the first two games but had only one tackle. The team chose to keep Baraka Atkins ahead of Babin.

• The inflammation linebacker Will Herring suffered in his knees and one ankle that prevented him from participating in training camp has been remedied. Herring is on the physically unable to perform list and won't be eligible to be activated until after the sixth game. Herring, a fifth-round pick in 2007 and special-teams mainstay last season, is recovering from offseason knee surgery. "There's no inflammation anymore," Herring said. "I feel great. The main thing now is getting this knee stronger."

• Safety Brian Russell took snaps as a quarterback after practice, which was really like an emergency drill. He would be the Seahawks' emergency quarterback behind backup Charlie Frye. Russell played quarterback until his junior season at San Diego State.





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Robinson: 'I can still play'
Posted by Eric Williams @ 04:20:00 pm

In his first workout with his former team since the Seattle Seahawks released him in 2005, there were few surprises for wide receiver Koren Robinson.

Although a little rusty and not in football shape, Robinson appeared to still have the speed and quickness he's known for. He looked comfortable catching balls during individual team drills, and he made a nice diving catch across the middle of the field during team drills.

Robinson did sit out about a third of the practice, as the team wants to make sure he doesn't injure himself trying to do to much too early.

Overall, Robinson said it was good being back. He apologized again for the incidents he had while in Seattle. He's unsure how much time he'll see on Sunday, but you might see Robinson returning kicks, and he'll probably be used in some capacity offensively, although Holmgren said the receiver rotation will be determined by the end of the week.

"I can still play, don get it twisted," Robinson quipped while addressing reporters after practice. "But I’m not where I’m going to be. I’m not coming in here to be the savior or anything like that. I’m just coming in here and hopefully I can be that spark that we need on the offensive side of the ball.”

You can listen to Robinson's apology to fans here.

Seahawks offensive tackle Walter Jones said it was good to see his Robinson back on the field again.

"He’s a great receiver," Jones said. "Any time you’ve got a guy who once you put the ball in his hands he can make plays. And hopefully he can come here now and still do that for us."

While Robinson worked his way in slowly, Keary Colbert was thrust into the middle of things and appears like he can help right away. Colbert looks like he has good speed and decent hands, and just needs to pick up Seattle's offensive system quickly in order to see time on Sunday.

Another receiver who looked good in practice was Deion Branch, who appears to be inching closer to be ready to play on Sunday. Branch seemed to have more bounce in his step, got in and out of his breaks quicker and ran with more of a burst today.

Branch seems to be trusting his knee more now. He still hasn't participated in a lot of contact drills, so that seems to be the next step for him.

Sean Locklear also returned to practice with a brace on his sprained knee and participated on a limited basis.

Maurice Morris (knee), Bobby Engram (shoulder), Seneca Wallace (calf), Kelly Jennings (ribs) and Walter Jones (hip) did not participate in practice today.

Jennings and Jones are expected to be back by Friday.

Wide receivers Drew Bennett (foot) and Keenan Burton (knee) did not practice for the Rams. Offensive guard Jacob Bell (hamstring) and defensive end Leonard Little (hamstring) participated on a limited basis.