Seahawks ship safety Boulware to Texans
He was a first-day draft pick who became a defensive starter in his rookie season but eventually fell out of favor.
That explains why the Seattle Seahawks traded safety Michael Boulware to the Houston Texans on Saturday – and why the Houston Texans traded defensive end Jason Babin to Seattle.
The teams made a player-for-player trade that not only rid themselves of disappointing ex-starters but also filled a minor need.
Babin, 27, gives the Seahawks another veteran defensive end to go with Patrick Kerney, Bryce Fisher, Darryl Tapp and rookie Baraka Atkins.
The Seahawks lost an experienced defensive lineman when tackle Marcus Tubbs was placed on injured reserve Saturday, when the team got its roster down to 53 players. Tubbs suffered a knee injury in the preseason finale and will not be eligible to play until 2008.
Tubbs and Boulware were the only big names on the day’s list of roster moves. Among the players released were cornerback Pete Hunter, fullback Josh Parry and tight end Leonard Stephens. The big news wasn’t so much who was cut but who wasn’t.
The most surprising player to make the team may have been University of Washington product C.J. Wallace, who was so impressive during the preseason that the team gave up on Boulware and made Wallace the fifth safety.
They also traded an undisclosed 2008 draft to Jacksonville in exchange for one of the Jaguars’ draft choices, plus running back Alvin Pearman. To make room on the roster, the team released quarterback David Greene.
Pearman was drafted by Jacksonville in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL draft. He has played in 29 career games with 58 carries for 238 yards and two touchdowns, the Seahawks said. He has also caught 34 passes for 252 yards.
Greene was a third-round draft choice by Seattle in the 2005 draft. The deepest positions for the team are at linebacker (seven) and wide receiver (six). Two Auburn rookies, linebacker Will Herring and receiver Courtney Taylor, made the cut.
Former Auburn teammate Kevin Hobbs, a cornerback, wasn’t so lucky. He was among the 21 players cut. The list of cuts included Hobbs, Hunter, Parry, Stephens, cornerback Omowale Dada, quarterback Derek Devine, wide receiver Joe Fernandez, defensive end Brandon Green, defensive tackle Marcus Green, cornerback DeJuan Groce, linebacker Cameron Jensen, wide receiver Jordan Kent, fullback David Kirtman, tight end Joe Newton, wide receiver Logan Payne, center Pat Ross, defensive end Nu’u Tafisi, defensive tackle Eric Taylor, guard Steve Vallos, running back Marquis Weeks and tackle Kyle Williams.
In the end, the Seahawks had no room for Boulware, either. A star linebacker at Florida State, Boulware initially made a smooth transition to NFL safety before allowing too many deep passes to go over his head.
Babin started 21 games in Houston while playing in 43. The former first-round pick from Western Michigan started all 16 games as a rookie in 2004 but got benched early in the 2005 season, along with cornerback Phillip Buchanon, in an attempt to give the Texans’ defense a boost.