Monday Hawkville

[News Bot]

A recap of the day’s activities at Virginia Mason Athletic Center for Monday, Oct. 3:
FOCUS ON
The 61-yarder. As in, the field goal Steven Hauschka attempted at the end of Sunday’s 30-28 loss to the Atlanta Falcons at CenturyLink Field.
Coach Pete Carroll has been second-guessed for not going for the first down on fourth-and-8 with 13 seconds left in the game to give Hauschka a closer attempt. But he hasn’t had second thoughts about the decision.
“Only that I wish it would have gone,” Carroll said today during his day-after news conference. “We easily could have gone the other way on that and this is one of those coach’s choices. But I wanted to win the game right then, and not take a chance on not converting on fourth down.”
Carroll said that Hauschka has been kicking the ball well and long – including what Carroll called “a monster kick” in practice.
“So we took a shot at just capturing the moment to win the football game right there following a great comeback, and unfortunately it didn’t happen,” Carroll said. “I’m fine about it. I knew clearly what I wanted to do at the time and went for it.
“I’m not looking back at it.”
PLAYER WATCH
Matt McCoy. The linebacker and special teams standout will be out indefinitely with the knee he sprained while covering the first punt in Sunday’s game. And it’s more than just losing a backup linebacker for the Seahawks.
“Matt has carved out a really nice role here,” Carroll said of McCoy, who did not play a down of linebacker during the regular season last year. “He’s jumped into the nickel group … so that, in addition to all the special teams work that he’s done, was really helping us because it was allowing other guys to rest and share the special teams duty.”
Case in point: David Hawthorne, who played every snap at middle linebacker for the first time this season against the Falcons.
“It’s obvious that there was an impact,” Carroll said. “Matt has come a long ways and really helped us out this year. So we’re going to miss him.”
Carroll labeled the injury a “significant knee sprain,” and said, “It’s going to be awhile before he gets back.” But it does not look like McCoy will need surgery at this time, Carroll said.
INJURY REPORT
Mike Williams got a concussion in the game and Carroll said the wide receiver will have to go through the evaluation process before he’s cleared to practice.
Strong safety Kam Chancellor missed the game because of a deep thigh bruise, but Carroll said the plan is to have Chancellor return to practice on Wednesday.
There was no additional information on the status of defensive tackle Anthony Hargrove and linebacker Malcolm Smith, who injured hamstrings during the game.
Carroll also said that left guard Robert Gallery’s targeted return is after the team’s Oct. 16 bye week. Gallery has been out since injuring a groin at Pittsburgh (9/18).
STAT DU JOUR
Hawthorne is attempting to become the sixth player to lead the team in tackles for three consecutive seasons. It appeared that quest was in jeopardy after he missed the season opener because of sore knee. But Hawthorne had a game-high 10 tackles on Sunday and is right back in the thick of it with 22 for the season – four behind free safety Early Thomas (26); three behind linebacker Leroy Hill and cornerback Marcus Trufant (23 each); and tied with cornerback Brandon Browner and Chancellor.
Here’s a look at the group Hawthorne is trying to join:
Player Seasons
MLB Terry Beeson 1977-79
LB Michael Jackson 1980-82
LB Fredd Young 1985-87
LB Chad Brown 1997-99
MLB Lofa Tatupu 2005-08
UP NEXT
The players are off Tuesday, but return on Wednesday to begin preparing for Sunday’s game against the 3-1 New York Giants at the Meadowlands.
YOU DON’T SAY
“No. I’ve never felt that at all. I just try to get to the truth. It’s always about the truth. The first thing we talked about was the sting of losing, and what it feels like and what it is. And it’s real.” – Carroll when asked if there were moral victories in his coaching philosophy

Source: Seahawks.com