Seahawks still seek Strong's leadership

The Seahawks might be thanking the schedule-makers this season for not putting Ford Field on the list of regular-season road trips.

Why? To hear running back Shaun Alexander tell it, several key offensive starters got injured in the 2006 regular-season opener at Detroit, and were never the same the rest of the campaign.

Alexander and fullback Mack Strong were two of the players who took a beating that Sunday in the same place where the Seahawks lost Super Bowl XL. Alexander ended up missing six games with a cracked foot bone, and Strong somehow managed to play in all 16 games, but did so in discomfort.

Late in the season, a bad ankle and a pinched shoulder nerve limited Strong, who was forced to play more than what was originally planned because of the loss of backup fullbacks Leonard Weaver before the season and Josh Parry in late November.

"I was tired. I was worn out after the second game. I felt like I could have gone on IR [injured reserve] myself," Strong said. "I was banged up. My ankle was hurting, shoulder was hurting, but that's football. You don't make any excuses. You have to go out there and get the job done."

Translation: Strong, 35 and in his 14th NFL season, was overworked out of necessity. The Seahawks didn't have anyone else they could trust on a regular basis.

The lead escort for Alexander in 2005, Strong had six blown blocks (according to statistics from Pro Football Prospectus) to lead all NFL non-offensive linemen in that dubious category. Yet he rushed for 149 yards, the second-highest total in his career, and tied a career high with 29 catches, earning a second consecutive trip to the Pro Bowl.

"Maybe five, 10 years ago, I could have had those reps and it wouldn't have bothered me too much, but I'm at a point in my career where I can't necessarily do that and still be effective," he said. "I have to be a little fresher. But at the same time, whatever I'm called upon to do this year, I'm going to go out and give it my best."

Said running backs coach Stump Mitchell of Strong: "I wouldn't say he had a down year, [but] a guy in his 14th year playing 50 plays a game, that's a heck of a lot of plays for Mack."

This year, Weaver is healthy and likely to make the team as Strong's backup, with Parry holding an outside chance of being on the roster as well. So Strong knows he'll get spelled from time to time.

Strong could have retired. The Seahawks have drafted players and signed others to compete with Strong in years past, but no one has been able to take the fullback job away from the former undrafted free agent who has made the Seattle area his home.

Retirement probably isn't too far off, but not now.

"Just knowing that we have a very good football team out here and we have the opportunity to accomplish a lot of great things as a team," Strong said when asked why he is back for another season. "That really inspires me to come back. If this was a situation where the team was sort of rebuilding, I'd probably have to second-guess that one. But I feel like we're still pretty close to some very special things around here and I want to be a part of it."

When football is over, perhaps a place in the broadcast booth awaits. Strong provided commentary on three Everett Hawks arena league telecasts this past offseason.

"It's an eye-opening experience. It's as much work if not more than what you would put in to prepare for a game on Sunday," Strong said. "I look forward to hopefully having that to transition into after I get done."

One day it will be time to walk away. But Alexander and the Seahawks hope Strong isn't done just yet.

José Miguel Romero: 206-464-2409 or jromero@seattletimes.com