By Mike Kahn
Seahawks Insider
Just because it was the seventh round didn’t mean the Seahawks wouldn’t be able to add quality depth and fill needs with their two picks. So the staff stayed on task and filled in a couple of blanks before hitting the phones to complete the roster with free agents for next week’s mini-camp.
With the 233rd overall choice, they took the quick running back from California Justin Forsett, and then at the 235th spot, they snapped up Georgia place-kicker Brandon Coutu.
Forsett, at 5-8, 194 pounds rushed for 1,543 yards and 15 touchdowns, plus caught 22 passes for 202 yards as a senior for the Bears.
Coutu, 5-11, 183 pounds, kicked in all 13 games his senior year, hitting on 18-of-23 field goals and all 49 extra points for the Bulldogs. He was 10-for-10 on kicks 39 yards or less and he also averaged 59 yards on 67 kickoffs and one touchback.
Forsett was primarily a special teams player behind Marshawn Lynch before his senior year, but still rushed for 626 yards and 4 touchdowns as a junior and 999 yards and 6 touchdowns as a sophomore – with three starts. Timed at 4.55, he doesn’t have great speed, but he shows exceptional quickness, with the ability dart in and out of holes and catch balls in the flat.
“Just doing some of the things that bigger backs can’t do, you can take advantage of my versatility,” Forsett said. “You can line me up in the slot, run routes – or hide behind the line of scrimmage and pop out at the last second as a receiver. I can just use size to my advantage.”
Just like Forsett, Coutu has some impressive numbers. He was hoping the Seahawks were going to draft him, having spent considerable time with special teams coach Bruce DeHaven. Ironically, DeHaven had worked out another Georgia kicker – John Kasay – a generation ago. But DeHaven was the special teams coach in Buffalo at the time and the Seahawks drafted Kasay in the fourth round.
At the moment, Coutu is working with Georgia alum and retired Chicago Bears kicker Kevin Butler on field goal technique, and veteran kicker Morten Andersen and his trainer to strengthen a variety of muscles and improve his technique for kickoffs. Before tearing his hamstring five games into the 2006 season, he made all 17 extra points and was 10-of-11 field goals, with his only miss from beyond 50 yards. He tore the hamstring on an onside kick, booting the ball from an odd position and he adamantly insists there were no ill effects this season and he’s only getting stronger.
To be sure, his numbers certainly reflect his resolve.
“I had a feeling they (were going to draft me), but I didn’t think it would be this late,” Coutu said. “It was a little surprising. I’m excited because they showed as much interest as anybody, they have the best facilities and one of he best fan bases.
“I’ve had zero trouble with my hamstring. It happened in a position that was not a field goal or kickoff position. It was an onside kick and a technique I will probably never do again. I have the length strength to kick a field goal from two steps away, so why can’t I kick it to the end zone from 10 steps away?”
It’s a good question his mentors will very likely figure out. But in the process, he’s just thrilled to have the opportunity to compete with Olindo Mare, the veteran who was signed as the possible answer to Josh Brown bolting for huge free agent money in St. Louis.
“Are you kiddin’ me? One of the best teams in the freakin’ NFL every year and one of the biggest shoes to fill, but it’s also one of the biggest opportunities,” Coutu said. “And this is a team I’m not going to wait around, I’ve got another pick here in the seventh round to give me a chance. I’d much rather have somebody say, ‘Hey I’m going to take a chance you,’ rather than say, ‘Hey, I’m going to call after the draft and try to recruit me.’
“The respect that Seattle had to go ahead and say, ‘Hey, I’m going to draft him in the seventh round,’ means a lot to me and I’m just going to work a little harder to hopefully take advantage of the opportunity I have.”