KIRKLAND, Wash. -- Seahawks backup fullback David Kirtman broke his hand during practice Wednesday morning, the third injury of Seattle's four-day-old training camp.
Kirtman, a fifth-round draft choice from 2006 out of Southern California, was participating in a running plays drill with backs and linemen when he suddenly walked off the field with a trainer while holding his right arm. By the afternoon, Kirtman was wearing a soft brace over his right hand and wrist.
A Seahawks spokesman said Wednesday night that the team has yet to determine a treatment course for Kirtman, so there is no estimate on how long he will be out.
Kirtman spent most of last season on the practice squad before being added to the active roster in December. He did not appear in a game. But he stands to get more opportunities this season. Mack Strong, Seattle's two-time Pro Bowl fullback who turns 36 in September, said Wednesday that coaches have told him he will be yielding some of his playing time to younger players this season.
"I know this is the year - I've had conversations with my coaches - that we are going to try to integrate Leonard (Weaver), or whoever the fullback is, into things a little bit more," Strong said, before praising Kirtman for being equally adept at blocking, running and pass receiving.
"That is the type of fullback that succeeds in this offense," Strong said of coach Mike Holmgren's West Coast scheme.
On Sunday, defensive back Jordan Babineaux bruised his knee. He is expected to miss three to four weeks.
And Floyd Womack, trying to win a starting spot on the right side of the offensive line, injured a hamstring muscle. Womack - recovering from arthroscopic surgeries in both knees, probably wasn't going to play until Seattle's fourth preseason game, anyway. Holmgren said Tuesday that the hamstring injury should not alter that plan.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
