Seahawks’ DT Hill done for season; Unger back

RENTON — The Seahawks placed DT Jordan Hill on injured reserve Tuesday a few hours after coach Pete Carroll revealed that Hill injured his calf during the Seahawks’ bye week while rehabbing a knee injury he sustained in the regular-season finale against the Rams.

“He injured himself working out over the weekend, and he has a pretty severe calf pull on the other leg that’s going to keep him out,” Carroll said. “So it wasn’t the knee that happened in the game.”

Dave Mahler of KJR radio, citing an anonymous source,  reported that Hill tore his calf muscle. To replace Hill, who will not return for the rest of the season, on its 53-man roster, Seattle signed DB Steven Terrell from its practice squad Tuesday and replaced him with DT Jimmy Staten.

C Max Unger (ankle) will return to the lineup Saturday after missing the final six games of the regular season. Unger hurt his knee and ankle Nov. 16 during Seattle’s loss to Kansas City and played in just six games in 2014, while backups Lemuel Jeanpierre and Patrick Lewis saw spot duty in his stead.

“Tough year for injuries,” Unger said Tuesday. “But I’ve got a good shot of being back out there this week. The bye week was huge, especially (with) not playing the last six weeks.”

The loss of Hill, a second-year player out of Penn State, is unfortunate for a Seattle defense that gave up 39 points over the final six games of the regular season — all wins. After a relatively quiet start to 2014, Hill came on during that stretch, upping his sack total from zero to 5.5.

It was a major sign of progress for the athletic, 6-foot-1, 303-pounder after the Seahawks took Hill in the third round of the 2013 NFL draft. In 2014, Hill played in 13 games, making 19 tackles (15 solo) one interception and recovering three fumbles.

Carroll expressed optimism that DT Demarcus Dobbs (high ankle sprain) might be available to play in Saturday’s divisional round game at CenturyLink Field against the Carolina Panthers (5:15 p.m., FOX).

Dobbs missed the final three games of the regular season with the injury after Seattle claimed him off waivers from San Francisco in early November. If he can’t return, the Seahawks will be thin along the interior of their defensive line, having already lost DT Brandon Mebane (hamstring) for the season.

Terrell, meanwhile, has bounced between the Seahawks practice squad and active roster since signing with the organization in July. During the regular season, he appeared in four games and made one special teams tackle. Staten was drafted by the Seahawks out of Middle Tennessee State in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. He’s yet to play.

Though backup S Jeron Johnson has been ruled out Saturday after dislocating his elbow in the regular season finale, Tuesday’s injury news wasn’t all negative for the Seahawks. WR Jermaine Kearse (hamstring) and CB Tharold Simon (shoulder) should be available Saturday. Kearse missed the regular season finale.

“We’re very fortunate,” Carroll said. “Even though there’s been losses during the season, I think Max (Unger) coming back and Russell (Okung playing) last week, all of that adds to the feeling that we’re pretty strong going into the playoffs.”

Seahawks sign valet whiz to active roster

Seahawks DT Landon Cohen, signed Monday to Seattle’s active roster, was running his valet-parking company in Spartanburg, SC., until his phone lit up.

That’s when the Seahawks invited him to Seattle.

“I was sleeping — in between watching  ‘Step Brothers.’ So I didn’t see the phone call at first,” Cohen told Gregg Bell of The News Tribune.

Cohen, 28, hasn’t even been on a practice squad since being cut by the Buffalo Bills prior to the start of the regular season, after appearing in 13 games for the Bears in 2013. Lately, when he wasn’t running his parking company, the former seventh-round draft choice out of Ohio University (2008) told reporters that he’s been boxing, running up hills and doing Brazilian jujitsu, among other things, to stay in shape.

In six NFL seasons, Cohen has 46 tackles in 40 games, including eight starts. Drafted by the Lions, he’s spent time with Jacksonville, New England, Dallas and Chicago. He was out of the league in 2012.

Now, he’s on the active roster of a team favored to win the Super Bowl.

Is he excited?

“Oooh–wee, come what may. That’s a saying by Bob Marley,” Cohen said. “So whatever happens, happens. So I kind of play like that.”

Bevell and Cable dish on interviewing for head coach openings

Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell was busy during Seattle’s off-week. He interviewed for the vacant head coaching positions in Buffalo and Oakland.

Meeting with the media Tuesday, he declined to offer specifics on how the interviews went but expressed gratitude for getting a shot at moving up the coaching ranks.

“I don’t know where it stands,” he said. “I was excited for the opportunity. It’s something that’s pretty neat, just to feel that respect.”

Bevell added that he might not have taken the interviews if Seattle didn’t have what amounted to a bye week. Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn reportedly interviewed for four head coach jobs. He’ll speak to the media Wednesday.

“I don’t think because we had the bye week that it’s as big of a deal,” Bevell said. “I mean, we didn’t even know who we played until late Sunday or whatever it was.”

Offensive line coach Tom Cable, head coach in Oakland from 2008-10, last week interviewed with the New York Jets for their top job. Tuesday, Cable reaffirmed his desire to be a head coach again but didn’t exactly sound like a guy headed out of town.

“When the right situation comes my way, you bet, but I have a tremendous place to be at, a great group of guys to coach and good coaches to coach with,” he said. “So I’m as good as you can get.”