RENTON, Wash. (AP) – Pete Carroll never fully appreciated what Lofa Tatupu brought to his defense at Southern California until Tatupu was on his way out of college and headed toward a pro career.
The Seattle Seahawks learned a similar lesson a year ago when Tatupu, their defensive captain and three-time Pro Bowl selection, missed 11 games with hamstring and pectoral injuries.
His value to the Seahawks defense was never more evident than the final nine games of last season when Tatupu was recovering from his torn pectoral.
The Seahawks defense was thrashed for 281 points in those games when Tatupu was a spectator. Seattle went just 3-6 in its final nine games, part of the reason wholesale changes came about in the offseason.
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