Time is ticking to see what Seneca Wallace can do

Several Friday afternoons ago, Seneca Wallace was hobbling around the Seahawks' locker room, barely able to make it from one side of the room to the other without holding a door jam or a locker stall for support.

It was a sight so familiar in this mind-numbing season, hardly anybody noticed him.

But less than 24 hours later, Wallace was on the field, somehow gliding through a late-morning workout before the Hawks' game against St. Louis.

Wallace shouldn't have been able to walk, but there he was trying to run. Trying to will away the pain in his calf.

Eventually reality set in and Wallace wisely sat. But the fact he was working so hard, so close to kickoff, trying to get into the game, says a lot about his hunger to play football and his willingness to sacrifice so much just to get on the field.

Every coach should want a player who has what Seneca Wallace has.

He is such a good athlete, Boston Celtic Ray Allen has told people Wallace could have played in the NBA, that Wallace could have been a player in the mold of New York's Nate Robinson.

Wallace has an abundance of what Southern coaches might call "want-to." He has a body that is nitroglycerin explosive. He has speed. He has hops. And he has a 20-game winner's arm.

But are the Seahawks wasting him at quarterback? Has he lost time, biding his time behind Matt Hasselbeck?

Wallace could be a Pro Bowl punt returner. He could be a dangerous wide receiver.

He is a playmaker who in his six NFL seasons hasn't been given enough chances to make plays.

Two seasons ago, when Hasselbeck suffered a knee injury, Wallace got a chance to start four games. He was OK. He kept the Hawks competitive.

The Hawks split his four starts. Wallace kept them in the NFC West race and allowed Hasselbeck to return and close the deal.

That season, the busiest of his career, Wallace threw eight touchdown passes and seven interceptions. His passer rating was 76.2.

He is a serviceable quarterback, probably in the top half of NFL backups, but he could be a dynamic force for an offense that is woefully shy of dynamite.

The Hawks have entertained this idea many times before. Wallace caught a 28-yard pass in Seattle's first scoring drive in the 2005 NFC Championship Game against Carolina. He caught a 6-yard pass on the first play of the 2006 wild-card game against Dallas.

And Wallace was in the game plan as a receiver this season against San Francisco, but hurt his calf before the game and couldn't play.

He has so much more to give the team and the league, but his clock is ticking. Wallace turned 28 in August, and it feels as if it is time to turn him loose.

He has been loyal to the Hawks. He has done the hard work and has learned coach Mike Holmgren's offensive system. Why not reward him for his loyalty with more playing time?

Flank him out and let him use his mercury moves on cornerbacks. Drop him back to field punts.

At this point in a 1-5 season, what do the Hawks have to lose? Let's see if Wallace has a future somewhere besides quarterback.

Watching him run for his life Sunday against Tampa Bay, starting in place of injured Hasselbeck, was painful. He didn't look sharp. He was out of sync with his receivers.

He threw only 23 times, completed 12 for a mere 73 yards. Only three of his completions went to wide receivers. And the Hawks converted only 2 of 10 third downs.

It's unfair to judge Wallace the quarterback on that game. His calf still was sore. He was playing a Monte Kiffin-coached defense on the road. And he was throwing to a patchwork group of receivers.

But watching Wallace, even on a suspect leg, there is a sense that there is more there.

Maybe he isn't Randy Moss. Maybe he isn't the savior for this season. But Seneca Wallace is a football player who hasn't gotten the chances he deserves to play the game.

The clock is ticking. Free Seneca Wallace.

Steve Kelley: 206-464-2176 or skelley@seattletimes.com.

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