Seahawks running back Christine Michael has had an “awakening. On Saturday, he received an opportunity to show what he can do as a fully-awake tailback.
“He’s an NFL football player,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said after Saturday’s game. “He really has made it clear to us about the work; he’s serious about the consistency. He’s taken great pride in the way he’s brought it to practice -- day in and day out all throughout the offseason and camp. He’s an explosive, dynamic athlete, so we’re just going to keep going with him. When Thomas [Rawls] gets back out there, those guys give you a one-two punch that we’re excited about. We’ll see when C.J. [Prosise] gets back [this week] we’ll see where he fits in there. I thought Christine did really well. I liked what he did.”
Michael ran for 44 yards on seven carries in Kansas City, an average of 6.3 yards per carry. That’s a big increase from last year’s 3.7-yard-per-carry average in the preseason, a performance that prompted the Seahawks to ship the former second-round pick to Dallas for a conditional seventh-round selection.
Michael later was cut by the Cowboys, signed by the Washington practice squad, and later released before rejoining the Seahawks as a late-season injury replacement. The experience has prompted Michael to take his football career more seriously, and he’s now in position to challenge Rawls for the top spot on the depth chart.