June 25, 2008

The concerns keep mounting for Seahawks special-teams coach Bruce DeHaven. It’s bad enough that neither free-agent addition Olindo Mare nor seventh-round rookie Brandon Coutu has come close to making anybody forget departed PK Josh Brown, replacements must be found for the coverage unit’s top two performers (free-agent defectors Niko Koutuvides and Kevin Bentley), the new long-snapper is expected to be unproven sixth-round rookie Tyler Schmitt and a scramble is under way among a flurry of candidates to take over a huge portion of Nate Burleson’s return duties, as his role as a receiver has been greatly accelerated. Making matters worse is the untimely torn pectoral suffered by P Ryan Plackemeier while lifting weights that our sources tell us is likely to shut him down through training camp. “They’re hoping he’ll be ready for the season opener,” one longtime team insider told PFW. “Reggie Hodges, who was signed just to be another body, will be the punter for the rest of the summer. It’s funny that Plackemeier — who (looks like he) weighs more than (starting DRE) Darryl Tapp and is one of the team’s more out-of-shape guys — was even lifting weights.” One more concern worth mentioning: Plackemeier also was the team’s primary holder, and his backup is none other than starting QB Matt Hasselbeck, who team insiders agree might be much better off avoiding any unnecessary risk of injury.