I'm amazed (and letdown.. I wanted Hasselback in Dallas
) that they kept all 3 in Seattle:
Seahawks sign Hasselbeck; GM Bob Ferguson resigns
By TIM BOOTH, Associated Press Writer
February 22, 2005
KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) -- The Seattle Seahawks signed quarterback Matt Hasselbeck to a six-year deal and named running back Shaun Alexander their franchise player Tuesday, ensuring that their three top offensive players are under their control.
In addition, general manager Bob Ferguson resigned as part of an executive house-cleaning.
Terms of Hasselbeck's deal were not immediately available. The franchise designation for Alexander -- who came within one yard of the NFL rushing title last season -- prevents him from becoming a free agent, grants him a one-year contract worth about $6.3 million and gives the team until March 16 to try to reach a long-term deal.
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Last week, the Seahawks signed all-pro offensive tackle Walter Jones to a seven-year, $52.5 million deal.
A Pro Bowl selection in 2003, Hasselbeck battled injuries in 2004 and his numbers suffered. He threw for 3,382 yards and 22 touchdowns, down from 3,841 yards and 26 TDs in 2003.
Alexander rushed for a team record 1,696 yards and 20 TDs.
After a 3-0 start that seemed to validate preseason forecasts of a Super Bowl run, the Seahawks lost several tough games and finished 9-7 last season, good enough to win the weak NFC West. They lost to St. Louis in the first round of the playoffs.
Owner Paul Allen fired Bob Whitsitt, the team's president of football operations, last month, saying he wanted to bring in someone with a deep football background. Seahawks vice president Ted Thompson was hired to be Green Bay's general manager that same day.
Ferguson said Tuesday he was leaving, too.
``As the Seahawks transition to new football leadership I have decided it is also the right time for me to leave the organization,'' Ferguson said in a written statement, adding that he would stay on the job through the April draft.
The Seahawks hired Ferguson in February 2003, after he was fired as general manager of the Arizona Cardinals. Previously, coach Mike Holmgren had taken on the dual role of general manager.
Ferguson played linebacker at the University of Washington and worked with the Seahawks as director of sales and special events in the 1970s.
He has spent three decades in the NFL, including seven with the Cardinals, where he was hired as general manager in 1999. He was fired by Arizona in January 2003, after the Cardinals finished with a 5-11 record, losing nine of their last 10 games.
Ferguson's greatest success came in Buffalo, where he was director of player personnel during the 1990s, when the team went to four Super Bowls.
) that they kept all 3 in Seattle:
