Tarvaris Jackson says he’ll sign with Seahawks

By Brady Henderson

All indications are that the Seahawks are set to welcome back T-Jack.

Tarvaris Jackson, who was Seattle’s starting quarterback in 2011 before he was traded to Buffalo during training camp last summer, indicated on Twitter Wednesday afternoon that he’s headed to Seattle and that his deal with the Seahawks will become official Thursday.

This comes a day after ESPN’s John Clayton and Adam Schefter reported that Seattle was likely to sign Jackson, who was released by the Bills earlier this week. According to Schefter, Jackson will sign a one-year deal with the Seahawks.

It’s not known whether the Seahawks will make a corresponding roster move with quarterbacks Brady Quinn or Jerrod Johnson, who are competing to be Russell Wilson’s backup. Seattle kept two quarterbacks on its active roster last season and three the year before.

Jackson, 30, earned the respect of his teammates and a reputation for toughness while playing through a painful pectoral injury in 2011.

“He was a guy that worked hard, he was a guy that in some trying times he never blamed anybody, he was a guy who took accountability for whatever he did wrong,” Seahawks fullback Michael Robinson told “Bob and Groz” Wednesday. “And like I said, a really good player. Even with a torn pec he came out there and he can throw the ball better than most of the league, so a really tough guy.”

Former Seahawks defensive tackle Alan Branch had this to say when he signed with the Bills in April, reuniting with Jackson:

“I’ll say this: Tarvaris Jackson is one of the toughest competitors I’ve seen out there,” Branch told ESPN. “When he played when I was in Seattle, the guy was hurt in more than half the games and he kept playing. He had us winning games, too. We were in every single game. It’s not like we ever got blew out.”

None of those wins came in come-from-behind fashion, though, which was the knock on Jackson during that 2011 season. His inability to lead a game-winning drive despite several chances left him with a 7-7 record as a starter and no guarantee that he would be the starter in 2012.

Seattle signed Matt Flynn in free agency before drafting Russell Wilson in the third round, and Jackson was the odd-man-out in the three-way quarterback competition. He was traded to the Bills in August for a seventh-round pick and didn’t appear in a game last season while serving as Buffalo’s third quarterback.