Seahawks Fill Needs On Defense In ’06 Draft

CAPTION: Seattle Seahawks NFL first round draft pick, cornerback Kelly Jennings, center, with his new jersey is flanked by team president Tim Ruskell, left, and head coach Mike Holmgren, right, during a news conference at the teams headquarters in Kirkland on Sunday. Jennings played at the University of Miami and is expected to have the opportunity to start at cornerback with the Seahawks. AP Photo/John Froschauer.By Gregg BellAP Sports Writer KIRKLAND (AP) – Kelly Jennings’ nickname matches the Seattle Seahawks’ reaction to getting him in Saturday’s NFL draft. “Sweet.” The Seahawks apparently found the starting cornerback they needed when they chose the Miami cornerback with the 31st overall choice. Team president Tim Ruskell said the 5-foot-10, 178-pound Jennings was the only cornerback the Seahawks were considering at that spot. Seattle needed a cornerback after letting starter Andre Dyson go to the Jets as a free agent last month. “Of all the corners, he was the most consistent, game-to-game,” Ruskell said. “With the guys who were 6-2, who ran the 4.3s, their performance was like this,” Ruskell said, waving his hand up and down. “With Kelly, it was like this,” he said, running his hand horizontally in a smooth, flat line. The defending NFC champions then chose Virginia Tech defensive end Darryl Tapp with their second choice, at 63rd overall in the second round. The 6-foot-1, 252-pound Tapp is considered a pass-rushing force though he lacks the height many teams want at end. Seattle considers him a potential starter this season. Tapp adds depth to a defensive line that rotates as many as seven players during games. The Seahawks have only one experienced defensive end backing up Grant Wistrom and Bryce Fisher, 50-game veteran Joe Tafoya. Seattle did not have a choice in the third round, the result of signing Minnesota restricted free agent receiver Nate Burleson. Jennings, a second-team Associated Press All-America in 2005, was the first cornerback taken No. 1 by Seattle since ’03, when Marcus Trufant went 11th overall out of Washington State. Jennings will get a chance to start opposite Trufant at left cornerback beginning with a minicamp next weekend, along with ’05 holdover Kelly Herndon and returning nickel-back Jordan Babineaux. Ruskell said any concerns about Jennings’ lack of size were superseded by his playing 40 consecutive Miami games without injury, and playing them well. Last season, Jennings held his opposing receiver without a catch in games against Florida State, South Florida, Duke and Virginia Tech. Ruskell said Jennings could start the Sept. 10 season opener at Detroit. “He has that kind of competitive attitude,” Ruskell said. Jennings, already being a good team guy, said, “I’m just looking to contribute.” “If it happens and I start, I’ll be ready for the position,” Jennings said from his brother Tony’s home in Orlando, Fla. He said he watched the draft there with about a dozen family members. When asked for a scouting report on himself, Jennings said: “A smart guy. Great quickness. Great cover skills. I’ve got to work on being a little more physical off the line.” He apparently doesn’t have to work on his character, something Ruskell and his scouting staff value as much as football skills. Ruskell said Jennings’ two degrees from Miami proved the cornerback’s maturity and determination. “He has perseverance. He sets goals and achieves them,” Ruskell said. “There’s a dependability.” Jennings’ coach at Miami, Larry Coker, said the Seahawks will “love his character and his work ethic and the way he plays. He’s a great football player, a quality person … the Seahawks are getting a super player.” Seattle passed on Virginia Tech’s Jimmy Williams, rated by multiple so-called experts as the draft’s top cornerback. Had Jennings not been available, Ruskell said the team would have chosen a player from another position. Jennings, one of seven defensive backs taken in the first round, is considered a quicker, less-physical cover man than the 6-foot-2 Williams. Jennings has been likened to former Hurricane Phillip Buchanon, a 2002 Oakland Raiders first-round choice now with Houston. Buchanon was Jennings’ mentor when he first came to Miami as a redshirt freshman in 2001. Seattle also talked to free-agent former Pro Bowl cornerback Ty Law, but broke off discussions about signing him just before the draft. Ruskell said Jennings’ arrival likely leaves Seattle Law-less. “I don’t want to say for sure, but probably,” Ruskell said. After his second choice Saturday, he joked, “We’re all Tapp-ed out.” Tapp impressed the Seahawks by playing well against Virginia tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson, taken fourth overall Saturday by the Jets, in both Atlantic Coast Conference play and at January’s Senior Bowl all-star game. “I don’t buy into the size thing. I buy into how big the guy’s heart is,” Seahawks defensive line coach Dwaine Board said. “He can play in the NFL.” Tapp is a former soccer player who said he quit the game as a high school freshman because “I got too big for the clothes.” So he got a chuckle out of teams shying away from his as a defensive end because he was “only” 6-1. “Height is nothing but a number,” he said from his family home in Chesapeake, Va., during a party with more than a dozen relatives. “If you get caught up in height, you are going to miss something. That is what I am going out to prove.” Seahawks defensive coordinator John Marshall said the two new players will have chances to prove themselves, and soon. “Believe me, they’re both going to log considerable playing time this season,” Marshall said. “Both have significant opportunities for starting roles.”