The entire football world is about to learn what Seahawks fans have known for years: 
Each has been selected to the league’s all-decade team for the 2000s. The official announcement will be made prior to the Pro Bowl game in South Florida on Sunday, when the powerful and productive left side of the Seahawks’ offensive line from 2001-05 will join wide receiver Steve Largent and strong safety Kenny Easley (1980s) and defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy (1990s) as the only players in franchise history to receive the prestigious recognition.
Peter King of SI.com, one of the selectors for the all-decade team, offered this assessment of “Big Walt” and “Hutch” in making his choices, “You can argue that the left side of the Seattle offensive line from 2001-2005 is the best side of a line in history.”
That would be Jones at left tackle, where he was voted to eight Pro Bowls and selected All-Pro six times during the 2000s; and Hutchinson at left guard, where he was voted to three Pro Bowls and selected All-Pro twice with the Seahawks and has gone to four more Pro Bowls since joining the Minnesota Vikings in 2006.
“They’re the best,” Hall of Fame coach John Madden said at the Super Bowl following the 2005 season. “Walter Jones is the best left tackle. Hutchinson is one of the best guards.”
As good as they are individually, these two were even better when working in tandem – as was the case in 2005, when they paved the way for Shaun Alexander to set a then-league record with 28 touchdowns and lead the NFL with 1,880 rushing yards.
At their best, Jones and Hutchinson played off one another in an uncanny fashion.
“It didn’t take long for us to get on the same page and learn each other’s style,” Hutchinson, a first-round draft choice in 2001, once said. “It’s hard to describe. It’s more of a feel than a verbal communication. It’s a confidence in each other.”
One that became apparent almost as soon as Hutchinson slide in next to Jones, the sixth pick overall in the 1997 draft.
“It’s a good feeling to know that the guy beside you is on the same page as you,” Jones once said. “I know the time (Steve) has put in the weight room and in his film study and I think the sky is the limit for both of us.”
Offered Hutchinson, “Walt is very good at what he does and I feel I can always count on him, which makes my job easier. Walt’s an All-Pro, and that’s for a reason.”
Here’s what King had to say about these two who often performed as one:
On Walt: “Jones, a powerful man, was superb at dancing with quick speed rushers and steering them away from the pocket.”
On Hutch: “The best guard of the last 20 years. … The best masher and pass protector of any guard we’ve seen in recent years.”
Not surprising appraisals for those who had the privilege of watching them dance and mash during their four seasons together with the Seahawks. Just ask Tom Lovat, the team’s offensive line coach for much of that time.
“I’ve seen him get in jams before, but just because he’s so good with his feet he can get out of it,” Lovat once said of Jones. “On the few occasions he does get into a bad position he can come out on top because of his athleticism.”
Of Hutchinson, he added, “He’s a total football player. Hutch is a throwback player, a blue-collar, hard-working guy with a lot of pride and that’s what makes him so good. He came in and filled the bill. He’s everything we wanted and more.”
Unfortunately, they are together no more. Hutchinson signed with the Vikings in free agency after the team’s run to the Super Bowl in 2005. Jones spent the 2009 season on injured reserve while recovering from microfracture surgery on his left knee that ended his 2008 season after 12 games.
But their excellence cannot be denied – especially Jones, the Seahawks’ best player from the past decade and one of the best in the league.
“Walter is the best offensive linemen in the league and, in my opinion, he’s been that for a number of years,” former defensive end Grant Wistrom said in 2006. “If people didn’t realize that, they’re stupid.”
Wistrom knows, because he played against Jones as a member of the St. Louis Rams (1998-2003) and with Jones for three seasons with the Seahawks (2004-06). So does Mike Wahle, the Seahawks’ left guard in 2008.
“Walt is a special player,” Wahle said. “He’s just so gifted. There are simply things he can do that nobody else can.”
Now, Jones has the all-decade recognition to match his decade of dominance.
