Red Bryant was hoping that Friday night was just the first of many opportunities to prove his value as a fourth round draft choice for the Seahawks.
But it was tough.
"Oh man, I felt just like a rookie," said Bryant, who suffered a torn cartilage in his knee so Friday's preseason conclusion was his first game as a Seahawk.
"I made a couple plays, messed up a couple of plays. I played hard, got tired, played high, played low, so now I know what feels like to be a rookie on the field. Hopefully the Seahawks will give me the opportunity to continue to work. It felt great to get out there and just play in a real game. It is going to take some time from the standpoint that a lot of other rookies got to play in four preseason games. Unfortunately, I only played in one. But my knee feels great and I'll get stronger. Now that I'm on the 53-man roster, I've got to speed it up."
Saturday afternoon, Bryant officially became one of seven rookies to make the team, including defensive end Lawrence Jackson, tight John Carlson, fullback Owen Schmitt, kicker Brandon Coutu, running back Justin Forsett and linebacker David Hawthorne when the Seahawks announced their 53-man roster.
The team bought another week to deal with a couple of roster spots under unfortunate circumstances when two players were suspended Saturday by the NFL and will miss next Sunday's opener at Buffalo.
Starting defensive tackle Rocky Bernard is suspended without pay beginning Aug. 30 for violating the NFL Personal Conduct Policy. Defensive back Jordan Babineaux also has been suspended without pay as of Saturday but for violating the league's substance abuse program - and will also miss a paycheck from the second game, although he and Bernard will be allowed to play in the home opener against the San Francisco 49ers. Both players are eligible for the active roster on Sept. 8, the day following the game at Buffalo.
Consequently, two more players will be moved from the 53-man roster once they are activated. The Seahawks practice squad composed of as many as eight players can be put together on Sunday with the re-signing of some waived players from their own roster or any other roster if they put in a claim faster enough after 24 hours.
Wide receiver Ben Obomanu and defensive lineman Chris Cooper were placed on injured reserve for the season, as was rookie snapper Tyler Schmitt earlier in the week.
The retention of Forsett and Scmitt gives the Seahawks six running backs with Julius Jones, Maurice Morris, T.J. Duckett and Leonard Weaver. Waived was 2006 fifth round pick David Kirtman, a fullback via Mercer Island High School and USC. Two other local casualties were former University of Washington defensive tackle Larry Tripplett, who struggled throughout camp with a knee injury, and Washington State wide receiver/returner Michael Bumpus.
The officially released list from the Seahawks is as follows:
Placed on Injured Reserve
WR Ben Obomanu
DT Chris Cooper
Terminated Veteran Contacts:
WR Bryan Gilmore
DT Larry Tripplett
Waived:
DB Jamar Adams
QB Dalton Bell
DT Kevin Brown
WR Michael Bumpus
C Ben Claxton
DB Marquis Floyd
P Reggie Hodges
DB Kelin Johnson
C Nick Jones
FB David Kirtman
G Pat Murray
TE Joe Newton
LB Dallas Sartz
WR Trent Shelton
DE Nu'u Tafisi
T Kyle Williams
