Forsett stands tall

A few minutes after the media had been unleashed on the Seattle Seahawks’ locker room at Qwest Field late Saturday night, running back Julius Jones emerged from the shower and grinned out of one side of his mouth.

“Look at that,” Jones said. “We’ve got a new media star.”

A few lockers away, several reporters had gathered around Justin Forsett. The Seahawks’ soft-spoken rookie sat at his locker and answered questions with the modesty of a man fighting desperately just to make the final cut.

For one night, anyway, Forsett looked like a star-in-waiting. The diminutive running back piled up all 136 of his rushing yards after halftime of a 29-26 preseason win over the Chicago Bears. In the process, he won over a lot of fans in Seattle.

Listed at 5-foot-8, but realistically a couple inches shorter, Forsett has spent most of his life standing on tiptoes to get noticed. After the way he played Saturday, his toes may well have looked like those of a ballerina.

“I don’t want to say he single-handedly won the game,” veteran linebacker Lofa Tatupu said, “but it was pretty impressive.”

The question was posed to coach Mike Holmgren about whether Forsett has a chance to make the final 53-man roster. Holmgren answered as honestly as he can after just two preseason games.

“Right now, if I said anything about the roster, it would be premature,” Holmgren said. “I like (Forsett), and his teammates like him, and he produces. But it was a couple of games, and we have a ways to go here.”

The Seahawks are almost certain to keep veterans Julius Jones, Maurice Morris and Leonard Weaver on the roster. Owen Schmitt is the most likely candidate to serve as Weaver’s backup, while 254-pound veteran T.J. Duckett has a chance to stick as a short-yardage specialist.

The Seahawks typically keep a total of nine players at the running back and wide receiver positions, and the rash of injuries at receiver may well limit the number of runners needed. Only four, possible five, roster spots are available, meaning Forsett would have to make quite an impression to land one.

On the field, Forsett has done everything imaginable in terms of production. He has been the Seahawks’ best return man this preseason – Nate Burleson is likely to relinquish those duties, and Forsett and Ben Obomanu are the leading candidates to take over – and ranks second in the NFL with 194 rushing yards through two games.

Forsett lasted until the seventh round of the April draft for one obvious reason: size – or lack thereof. He is much stronger than he appears, and he uses his lack of height to his advantage.

“He’s got great leverage,” Tatupu said. “He’s tough to take down because he can react to any contact.”

Falcons offense regresses

The Atlanta Falcons offense took a step back in its second game.

Rookie Matt Ryan and fellow quarterbacks Chris Redman and D.J. Shockley combined for three interceptions and one lost fumble in the Falcons’ 16-9 preseason loss Saturday to Indianapolis.

The Falcons, who were the NFL’s fourth-worst scoring offense last season, went 0 for 5 on trips inside the Colts’ 20-yard line.

Ryan, picked third in the NFL draft, played frantically in his second exhibition outing.

The Falcons used Ryan as their No. 2 quarterback for the second straight week, but the former Boston College standout lacked the composure he showed in his debut Aug. 10 at Jacksonville.

Setterstrom re-injures knee

St. Louis Rams offensive guard Mark Setterstrom fractured his left kneecap in the second half of Saturday’s preseason game and will be placed on injured reserve.

Setterstrom tore a ligament and damaged cartilage in the same knee in the third game of the season last year, finishing that year on IR.

Also, rookie linebacker David Vobora (Idaho Vandals) has a severely sprained ankle and could miss the last two preseason games.