The signing followed a Tuesday
tryout at Kirkland HQ, which was first reported by Seahawks.NET. McCrary was selected
in the sixth round of the 1995 draft out of Mississippi State by the Philadelphia
Eagles, and spent two seasons in Philly before moving on to the Saints, Chargers,
Patriots and Falcons. His three-year term with the Falcons put him in front of
the eyes of Jim Mora and Tim Ruskell, two former Atlanta head honchos who currently
reside in the Seahawks hierarchy.
Mora, Seattle’s current secondary coach, had this to say about McCrary
in December of 2006 when he was still the Falcons’ head coach: “His
role over the last few weeks has increased. Freddie is an old warhorse. He knows
how to get it done. He is tough, a great leader, he is physical, he catches
the ball well and he brings some energy to the team. When we can utilize him
we need to.”
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Not unlike the fullback he’s replacing. Also like the fullback he’s
replacing., McCrary hasn’t ever carried the ball much – more of
a blocking specialist, he hit his season high in carries in 1997 with 8 for
New Orleans, He does, however, have 113 career catches for 646 yards and 7 touchdowns.
Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren said today that McCrary will back up Leonard
Weaver at fullback.
The Seahawks actually signed two
ex-Falcons on Wednesday – long snapper Boone Stutz will replace the recently
released Derek Rackley, who was cut on Tuesday. Stutz tried out Tuesday as well.
Stutz took Rackley’s job in Atlanta last year. The 6’6”, 259-pound
Texas A&M grad played tight end in college. He bounced around with
Tampa Bay before moving through Atlanta – and now, Seattle.