Boling: Too much Hutch, not enough winning
DAVE BOLING; THE NEWS TRIBUNE
RENTON –You might have expected that the ghost of the Steve Hutchinson deal-gone-bad would haunt Tim Ruskell until the final day of his tenure as president of the Seattle Seahawks.
And on his final day, Thursday, Ruskell conceded – at least in jest – that it had.
He expects it to dog him even further. To the grave.
He was kidding. But, hey, who knows? Fans have a long and critical memory.
Ruskell went out with admirable class, answering media questions, being appreciative of his opportunity, and praising his colleagues. And, say what you will about his personnel decisions, he’s handled himself well in public and been a respectable face for the franchise for five years.
And although the announcement of his resignation/replacement had its somber moments for Ruskell, he injected some light-heartedness and humor, too.
When asked to point out his best moves and then maybe some that he might be second-guessing, he brought up Hutchinson on his own.
Hutchinson, a young Pro Bowl guard, was designated the team’s “transition” player after the 2005 Super Bowl season. Had Ruskell placed the slightly more expensive “franchise” tag on him, Hutchinson would have been anchored to the Seahawks at least another season. But as a transition guy, Hutchinson was open to the money-whipping and creative-contract verbiage of the Minnesota Vikings.
Subsequently, the offensive line deteriorated and the Hawks slipped to their current state of non-competitiveness, winners of just eight of their past 26 games.
“Obviously, on the negative side, everybody wants to point to Hutch,” Ruskell said. “I talked to my wife the other day and I said, ‘Let’s look at that will again. It says burial, but let’s go for cremation so they won’t be able to write “Here lies the man that lost Hutch” on my tombstone.’ ”
Good line. CEO Tod Leiweke, who considers Ruskell a close friend, obviously wielded a velvet ax with as much anesthetic as possible. He used the laughter from Ruskell’s “tombstone” line to break in and say how much he will miss Ruskell’s levity.
But back to the Hutchinson situation, Ruskell stated the obvious, that he thought it would play out differently. “We went into it with the purest of intentions. Everybody knows what we wanted to have happen there … and it didn’t, for an unusual set of circumstances, but it wasn’t for lack of wanting the right thing to happen and getting a deal done.”
The scouting report on Ruskell is that he had some big hits on some draft guys, especially Lofa Tatupu, Leroy Hill, Brandon Mebane, Josh Wilson and others. But his first-round picks have been mostly disappointments, as have some of the aging free agents or trades brought on board in the past few seasons.
Yes, injuries have been a factor in the recent decline. But it’s fairly clear the Seahawks don’t have enough talent on the roster to be competitive. That’s on Ruskell. That’s his responsibility. The Seahawks had seven Pro Bowl selections in 2005. It’s doubtful they’ll have any this season.
When he occasionally surfaces in a public forum, Leiweke appears very capable and genial. Thursday was no different, except we got an even deeper look at his management skills as he delicately handled what was a very public dismissal of a friend. He showed both sympathy and toughness, a difficult trick. He didn’t dodge the obvious, or minimize the urgency of the moment.
“Quite simply, we didn’t win enough games,” Leiweke said. “I think that when you’re 4-12 (2008), there’s obviously expectations that follow that in the next season. And we simply didn’t win enough games. I work for a man, Mr. Paul Allen, who has exacting standards. It’s also his opinion that this is a unique and special franchise, and with it comes expectations. So, bottom line, we didn’t win enough games.”
Maybe rather than continuing to rattle the bones of Steve Hutchinson, that would be a more fitting epitaph for Tim Ruskell’s presidency of the Seahawks.
Quite simply, he didn’t win enough games.
Dave Boling: 253-597-8440
dave.boling@thenewstribune.com
RUSKELL’S HITS …
… AND HIS MISSES
Seahawks president and general manager Tim Ruskell had his share of successes, and plenty of misses in his five-year tenure as head of football operations for the team. We take a look at a few of each.
LB Lofa Tatupu: A second-round draft pick in 2005 out of USC, Tatupu quickly developed into a Pro Bowl player and leader of the defense on the team that advanced to the Super Bowl.
LB Leroy Hill: A third-round round draft pick in 2005, Hill became a starter in his rookie season has developed into one of the better linebackers in the league.
DT Chuck Darby: Stout, energetic lineman served as a defensive sparkplug along the defensive line during Seattle’s Super Bowl run.
WR Joe Jurevicius: Free agent pickup filled in for an injured Darryl Jackson and provided a big, physical target for quarterback Matt Hasselbeck.
OG Steve Hutchinson: Now widely considered the best offensive guard in the league, Hutchinson was transitioned tagged by Ruskell, allowing Minnesota to steal him away with poison pill contract and leading to a slide in play along the offensive line.
WR Deion Branch: picked up in a trade with New England for a first round draft pick in 2007, the former Super Bowl MVP has had two knee surgeries, and only one season with over 50 catches – not living up to six-year, $39 million deal.
C Chris Spencer: A first-round pick in 2005, toughness has been an issue for the fifth-year pro, who has only made it through a 16-game season without being injured one time. Spencer’s a free agent a season’s end.
CB Kelly Jennings: A first-round pick in 2006, Jennings has been in and out of the starting lineup during his four-year career in Seattle, struggling against bigger receivers, although he has played better of late.
Eric D. Williams, The News Tribune
