Not the size of the CB in the fight, but the size of the fight in the CB
Nov 6, 2014, 9:02 AM | Updated: 9:33 am
"He's scrappy," Richard Sherman said about fellow cornerback Jeremy Lane, who is eligible to play Sunday after missing the last seven games. (AP)
(AP)
BY
Former Seattle Sports Host
RENTON – At 6 feet tall, Jeremy Lane doesn’t have the size that people have come to associate with Seattle’s cornerbacks.
He does, however, have a competitiveness that can border on combativeness on the field, which is exactly the kind of fight the Seahawks love out of their cornerbacks.
“He’s scrappy,” teammate Richard Sherman said Wednesday. “That’s the best word to describe him ever, scrappy. He’s probably the scrappiest player in this league ever.”
That was evident early on in his Seahawks tenure. A sixth-round draft pick in 2012 out of Northwestern State, a lower-division college in Louisiana, Lane was kicked out of a scrimmage one week into his first training camp with the Seahawks because of a fight that resulted in a personal-foul penalty.
The fight wasn’t a surprise. Lane and receiver Ben Obomanu scrapped frequently during Lane’s first training camp in Seattle.
“Every day pretty much, he and Obo went at it,” Sherman said. “You could see that off the rip. He’s that kind of guy. He’s not the kind of guy that can come in and be complacent.”
Because of Lane’s size, people have questioned whether he’s suited to play outside cornerback in Seattle’s defense.
He absolutely is with his speed and ability to stick to opposing receivers. The question entering this offseason was how he would play when lining up in the slot and whether he could match up with larger receivers.
With the departure of Walter Thurmond, Lane seized hold of that role as Seattle’s fifth defensive back. At least he did until suffering a strained groin in training camp and then aggravating that injury during the regular-season opener against Green Bay.
The injury caused Lane’s move to the injured reserve with the designation to return, requiring him to miss eight weeks. Lane is eligible to be back this week and expected to be moved to the 53-man roster in time to play Sunday against the Giants.
