Interchangeable spots

After spending much of the 2006 season trying to prove that he had what it took to be an NFL defensive end, the Seattle Seahawks’ Darryl Tapp spent part of Sunday’s game against Arizona making his mark as a linebacker.

“It was fun,” the 6-foot-1, 270-pound Tapp said. “People were thinking (before the 2006 draft that) I was a linebacker anyway because of my size. Sometimes you just have to give them what they asked for.”

While Tapp only saw a handful of snaps at linebacker and will continue to fill the role of starting defensive end, his ability to change positions is a common thread on the 2007 defense.

Tapp is one of several defenders who have the ability to play multiple positions on a unit made up of versatile players.

“We can do a variety of things by having guys that can switch it up,” said safety Deon Grant, who has seen a few snaps at cornerback as part of a new-look run package.

Tapp, Grant, linebacker/defensive end Julian Peterson, defensive end/tackle Patrick Kerney and cornerback/safety Jordan Babineaux have provided the Seahawks with the kind of versatility that keeps offenses guessing.

“We’ve got too many guys on the defense who can make plays, so we’ve got to give them an opportunity to go out and do that,” Tapp said. “(Defensive coordinator John) Marshall and his staff are doing a great job week in and week out of game-planning everybody and putting people in position to be successful.”

Marshall and the defensive staff did a little bit of shifting in 2006, when former Seahawk Bryce Fisher would slide from his end position to the inside on passing situations, allowing Peterson to line up at end. This year’s Seahawks used a similar formation in the opener, with Kerney sliding inside.

Seattle’s coaching staff has also found several other ways to switch things up. In addition to Tapp’s new duties as a blitzing linebacker, the Seahawks have used Grant as a cornerback while bringing Mike Green into the game to fill in at strong safety.

“I don’t like to limit myself to one thing at all,” said Grant, one of five new starters on the 2007 defense. “I’ll play in the box or play man-to-man, whatever they need.”

Grant’s presence has brought some success in stopping the run in short-yardage situations, but the formation allowed the Cardinals to throw a 30-yard touchdown pass to tight end Leonard Pope in Sunday’s game. On that play, Grant and Peterson were both focused on tailback Marcel Shipp while Pope sneaked past Peterson and found himself wide open. Green came into the picture too late, missing Pope as he dove into the end zone.

Babineaux signs extension

Jordan Babineaux signed a five-year extension with the Seahawks, opting not to test free agency in the off-season.

Babineaux, nicknamed “Big Play Babs” by his teammates, could have become an unrestricted free agent after the season, but he will now remain with Seattle through the 2012 season.

Babineaux was signed by Seattle as an undrafted free agent in 2004 after a standout career at Division II Southern Arkansas. He played in six games on special teams that season, before earning his monicker during the Seahawks’ NFC championship season in 2005 with big plays on special teams and as an extra defensive back.