Report of Ruskell's demise leaves Seahawks silent

No Comment: Team has nothing to say about report that says general manager will leave

ERIC D. WILLIAMS; The News Tribune | • Published December 01, 2009

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Renton - A day after a published report - citing "inside sources" close to the Seattle Seahawks - said the team told general manager Tim Ruskell that he would not be retained at season's end, team officials would not comment on the report.

Ruskell is in the final year of a five-year deal, and it’s believed the Seahawks need to finish on a high note in order for him to have a chance at receiving a contract extension to continue molding them into playoff shape.

Pro Football Weekly expanded its prediction of Ruskell’s end in Seattle on Monday, speculating that former Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren would be the favorite to replace Ruskell, returning to the role he held along with head coaching duties before the team relieved him of his general manager role after the 2002 season.

The report goes on to say that if Holmgren is not satisfied with Jim Mora as his head coach, he may pursue his former pupil Jon Gruden, tryin to lure him away from ESPN to be Seattle’s next head coach.

Nothing in the report was confirmed by the Seahawks, and the team refused to publicly comment on the matter on Monday.

Ruskell has not been made available to Seattle-area reporters since July before training camp started. However, in a midseason interview on the team’s Web site, Ruskell did say heading into this season that he and Mora talked about having a two-year plan to get Seattle back to a playoff-caliber team.

“You have to step back from the whole thing and say, ‘OK, what’s the big picture here?’ ” Ruskell said in the interview. “It’s not the loss here or the win here. It’s, do they have a plan? Are they following it? Is there something they’re trying to get to?”

Mora said Monday he had not read the reports about Ruskell’s inevitable departure.

“I haven’t seen those reports, I’m sorry,” Mora said. “We’re pretty involved with St. Louis Rams clean-up and San Francisco prep. We live in a cave. We’re cavemen”

Mora was asked if he feels a sense of urgency for the team to finish strong, validating that the organization is headed in the right direction under Ruskell.

“Every week we want to create a sense of urgency to play our best, and that’s what we’re trying to do, show improvement on a week-to-week basis with everything that we do,” Mora said. “And sometimes that improvement is hidden a little bit, and you don’t see it.

“We want to win football games. We want to show improvement. That’s what we’re here for. So we’re excited about the opportunities we have in front of us.”

As for Ruskell’s departure, just as the report said, it seems unlikely that he would be told that he won’t return next year and still be allowed to direct scouting and make decisions about the team’s future.

Further, Seahawks owner Paul Allen would likely be heavily involved in any decision for Ruskell to be terminated, and Allen is currently undergoing chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Whether the report is accurate or not, ultimately the team will have to make a decision on Ruskell once the season ends in five weeks.

Jones RB starter – for now

Mora said running back Julius Jones, who was inactive for a second straight week with a bruised lung, was still experiencing tenderness to the touch on Sunday.

“I don’t know where he’ll be this week right now,” Mora said. “Hopefully he’ll be ready to play, but I can’t say with any certainty that that will be the case.”

Mora said Jones likely will again practice this week and will be monitored by the team’s training staff Asked if Jones was still the starter once he is fully healthy, Mora said yes – with a caveat.

“If he’s fully healthy and he’s had a full week of practice and everybody feels comfortable that he can bear the brunt of the workload that he would need to handle to be effective then he would start,” Mora said. “But, that being said, Justin (Forsett) has earned the right to carry the ball, off of what he did at Arizona, and what he did this week. So we’re going to make sure he gets touches.”

Extra points

Defensive end Cory Redding (concussion) had the only reported injury on Sunday. ... Forsett was awarded the offensive game ball, Jordan Babineaux got the defensive game ball and D.D. Lewis got the special teams game ball. Mora said that Babineaux has been making steady improvement since beginning the season as the starting safety, replacing Brian Russell.

Eric D. Williams: 253-597-8437

Eric.williams@thenewstribune.com

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