Seahawks plan to throw more to running backs this season

KIRKLAND — Mike Holmgren used to do more than simply hand it to his running backs.

He had his quarterbacks throw to them, too. Quite frequently, in fact.

From Edgar Bennett in Green Bay to Ricky Watters in Seattle, Holmgren was never afraid to put his backfield at the forefront of the receiving game. Heck, Holmgren got Shaun Alexander to wrap his hands around a prominent receiving role for at least a couple of years.

But that changed over the past four years as the offense catered to Alexander's strengths and shied away from his difficulties with both pass protection and receiving, and now Holmgren hasn't had a running back catch more than 40 passes for four seasons now.

So one week into training camp, Seahawks running backs are busy playing catch-up, which is just fine, since Seattle is using Julius Jones, Maurice Morris and fullback Leonard Weaver as receiving threats.

"That's a strength that the group has," quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. "And they're going to get opportunities, and we'll see. So far, it has been looking great."

The Seahawks have a revamped backfield with the additions of Jones and T.J. Duckett, new assistant coaches for the offensive line and the running backs, and a renewed emphasis upon throwing to the backs.

"We want to be another option for Matt," said Kasey Dunn, Seattle's running-backs coach. "This offense — as long as I can remember — has been real heavy throwing to the backs."

Certainly used to be that way. Bennett averaged 68 receptions in a three-year span from 1993 to '95 under Holmgren with the Packers, and in the coach's seven seasons in Green Bay, the halfbacks and fullbacks averaged 821.7 yards receiving per season.

His first five years in Seattle, the backs were a threat, too. At least one Seahawks running back caught 40 or more passes every season from 1999 to 2003. Watters had 600 yards receiving in 2000, and Alexander caught more than 40 passes for three consecutive seasons.

That changed in 2004 as the offense became oriented around Alexander, whose strengths were not in the passing game whether that was blocking a linebacker or cradling a pass. Alexander never caught more than 15 passes in any of his final three seasons in Seattle.

"I don't know how much confidence Matt had doing those things in years past," Holmgren said of throwing to the backs.

There was always the check-down to fullback Mack Strong on third-and-a-mile, and Weaver showed some promise as a target last season, but no running back has caught 40 passes in a season since 2003.

But it's more than just the fullback this season. Jones and Morris will be targets in the passing game, too. Dunn, the new running backs coach, coached wide receivers at Baylor in 2007 and he's working to get his running backs to grab hold of every opportunity in the passing game.

Dunn said the shift toward more opportunities caters to the pass-catching strengths of this group.

"These guys are good at that," Dunn said. "So it's not like we're trying to take somebody who can't catch the football and all of a sudden make him a great receiver. It's not like that. We're taking great receivers and trying to make them a little bit better."

Jones caught 35 passes his second season in Dallas, and he had 23 receptions last season even as his role lessened. He said his opportunities are expanding in Seattle, where he has found himself flanked out in some formations, going in motion and lining up in the slot as if he were a receiver.

"I'm doing a lot of different things than I've ever done before," Jones said. "Things that I've always wanted to do but I was never allowed to do in Dallas."

Jones smiles at just the thought of catching the ball out of the backfield and getting room to maneuver.

"Get out there against the linebacker, that's easy money," he said.

It will be up to the Seahawks to cash in on those opportunities this season.