Seahawks’ Rouen ready for his third Super Bowl
KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) – Tom Rouen doesn’t bring up the 1998 Super Bowl very often to Mike Holmgren. “Never,” Rouen emphatically said.
Job security is too important to the Seahawks punter.
Rouen will play in his third Super Bowl when Seattle faces the Pittsburgh Steelers on Feb. 5. This time, he’ll be on the same sideline as Holmgren, unlike Rouen’s first Super Bowl experience when his Denver Broncos beat Holmgren’s Green Bay Packers.
OK, so he is a punter. But Rouen has the most playoff experience on Seattle’s youthful roster, having been in 15 playoff games. Rouen, wide receiver Joe Jurevicius and defensive end Grant Wistrom will play in their third Super Bowls.
Rouen is 2-0 in the NFL’s big game, winning twice with Denver, and is fortunate to be in the position of kicking in the Super Bowl again.
“This is awesome,” Rouen said. “It’s always different every time and guys are just so excited to get there.”
Despite his experience and proven consistency, Rouen was jobless after being cut by the Carolina Panthers at the end of training camp. Instead of planning for life after football, the 37-year-old Rouen continued to work out, waiting for the phone to ring.
That call came in early October, and from a familiar voice.
Rouen spent the 2003 and the start of the 2004 season with the Seahawks. He averaged 41.2 yards per kick in 2003 and started the next season just as strong, averaging 42 yards.
But he injured his hamstring in the fourth game against St. Louis and was later placed on injured reserve.
Leo Araguz beat out Chris Kluwe for Seattle’s punting job in training camp, but after averaging 46 yards per kick in the opener against Jacksonville, his numbers dropped.
Seattle special teams coach Bob Casullo was shocked Rouen was available. He was among a group of punters brought in for a one day tryout as a possible replacement for Araguz.
Rouen won, hands down.
“It was obvious he had been honing his skills and he outkicked the competition. He was the best one,” Casullo said. “He’s very solid. He knows all the situations and he knows how to handle all the situations.”
Again, Rouen provided consistency. He averaged at least 40 yards a kick in seven of his 11 regular-season games, with a season-long kick of 62 yards against Indianapolis when the Seahawks beat the Colts and clinched home-field advantage.
He was 24th in the NFL averaging 41.6 per kick this season. In the playoffs, Rouen has punted nine times and averaged 42 yards.
“We kicked in a lot of really bad weather games and we were able to come out ahead in every single game. That’s the best you can hope for,” Rouen said. “During the year, you can’t compare yourself to someone kicking in a dome when you’re kicking in a blizzard on the same day. But comparing the guys that I went against, I had a good solid year.”
Perhaps Rouen’s worst kick of the season came in Seattle’s most important game. In the NFC title game against Carolina, Rouen’s second punt was a 42-yard line drive. The kick gave Carolina’s Steve Smith ample opportunity to run up on the punt and return it 59 yards for a touchdown.
Instead of letting the poor punt affect his performance, Rouen’s next kick was a perfect 40-yard boot that was downed at the Carolina 1. His veteran guile played a large part in that, Casullo believes.
“He made one mistake, he knew it, he owned up to it,” Casullo said. “A young punter that may have affected him drastically. … Tom erased it from his mind.”
Despite his experience, Rouen is still very teachable and is always asking for pointers. His goal against the Steelers will be trying to give Seattle’s coverage units a chance to contain Antwaan Randle El.
Rouen said his previous Super Bowl experiences with Denver mostly revolved around quarterback John Elway. He’s enjoying the team chemistry and focus of the Seahawks.
“Here you have a lot of up-and-coming stars. There, you had John. And John always carried the load for so many years,” Rouen said. “It’s neat to see everybody contribute and it’s a whole group effort.”