Babin, a Western Michigan alum,
was selected with the 27th overall pick in the 2004 draft.
Boulware was taken by Seattle
in the second round. A linebacker in college, Boulware was switched to strong
safety at the NFL level and had a great rookie season with five interceptions.
But though the 2005 and 2006 seasons, he was not able to maintain that same
level of play and was actually demoted from his starting job in 2006. He took
to his role as a special-teamer with class and professionalism, but it was still
a tough blow. Before the 2007 preseason, the Seahawks acquired free agent safeties
Deon Grant and Brian Russell. Houston doesn’t have much in the way of
safety talent, so Boulware will get another chance.
For the 6’2”,
259-pound Babin, who started every game in his rookie season, the dropoff began
in 2005 when he switched from linebacker to defensive end. He started only six
games in the next two seasons, and was designated at a situational pass rusher
by the Texans. It could be that Babin’s issues with the team were more
of a square-peg scenario as the Texans moved from a 3-4 to a 4-3. Is it possible
that the Seahawks have found a raw prospect from a small school who never got
a chance to flourish at a consistent NFL position?
In 2006, Babin put up five
sacks, three hits and five hurries. He will now compete for time in a Seattle
defensive line that is flush with pass-rushing defensive ends, but he does have
some coverage speed which would prove handy in a zone blitz.
For his career, Babin has
125 tackles, 13 sacks and 7 passes defensed.