BOB, GROZ AND TOM

Seahawks’ Will Tukuafu preparing for a busy day in Kansas City

Nov 13, 2014, 4:13 PM | Updated: Nov 14, 2014, 8:24 am

Will Tukuafu has played in each of the past two seasons for the Seahawks on both sides of the ball....

Will Tukuafu has played in each of the past two seasons for the Seahawks on both sides of the ball. (AP)

(AP)

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Seattle’s new fullback isn’t just a fullback.

Will Tukuafu can also played defensive line, something the Seahawks may actually need him to do starting Sunday now that their rotation is a man down. And when you take into account the different special teams he’s a part of, Tukuafu could be in for a busy afternoon in Kansas City.

“I’m preparing like I’m going to be playing offense, defense and special teams,” Tukuafu told 710 ESPN Seattle’s “The Huddle” on Thursday.

That’s quite a turnaround for a guy who had been released by San Francisco in September and was out of a job entirely for almost two months before Seattle came calling. The Seahawks thought Tukuafu and his 285-pound frame could add some much-needed physicality to their running game, something it had lacked since Derrick Coleman’s season-ending foot injury left Seattle without a traditional fullback.

Tukuafu was a defensive lineman in college at Oregon and played both end and tackle in San Francisco’s base 3-4 defense in addition to fullback. His ability to play defensive line was an added bonus when Seattle signed him, and it’s especially significant now that Brandon Mebane has been lost for the season with a hamstring injury. The Seahawks didn’t add a defensive lineman when they placed Mebane on injured reserve earlier this week, which could give Tukuafu a chance to mix into the rotation beginning Sunday.

His primary job, though, will be lead blocking for Marshawn Lynch, who isn’t all that particular about how he prefers that to be done.

“He told me the first day I came over here, ‘You can do no wrong,’ ” Tukuafu recalled. “I’m like, ‘What?’ I’m like, ‘So, how do you want me to attack this guy? You want my head on the outside?’ He’s like, ‘Dude, just go hit him. We’re going to race to see who can hit him first, so try to beat me there.’ ”

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Seahawks’ Will Tukuafu preparing for a busy day in Kansas City