Just three weeks after joining the Seahawks, cornerback Marcus Burley could be one of the more important players on the field when Seattle hosts Denver Sunday.
Thanks to a change in the NFL’s drug policy, Broncos slot receiver Wes Welker is back from suspension earlier than expected, which means a potentially challenging afternoon for Burley, Seattle’s starting nickel corner with Jeremy Lane sidelined by a groin injury.
“Oh yeah, definitely,” Burley said when asked if he expects the Broncos to go after him. “I’m up for the challenge.”
The Seahawks acquired Burley just three weeks ago in a trade with Indianapolis to add depth to their secondary, but he was thrown into a big role in the second half of season opener when Jeremy Lane aggravated a groin injury.
Burley says he feels like he’s now up to speed in Seattle’s defense, but he knows facing Welker will be a challenge.
“He’s a great receiver, shifty, quick, great hands, smart receiver,” he said.
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll says he’s seen growth in Burley in his short time with the Seahawks, but acknowledges the corner has a tough test in store this weekend.
“He’s right in the middle of it,” Carroll said. “He’s done a very good job. He’s a really disciplined, passionate kid about working and learning his job and fitting into this defense. He’s just been perfect in that regard. With this being Week 3 here, he’s feeling better about it, we’re learning to count on him, we can see him make the same plays over and over now, the discipline’s coming up. He’s got a very tough matchup in Welker in the slot—and anybody they want to put in there—and he’s a go-to guy. So he’s going to be checked out. He’s got great quickness though, and this is the kind of guy who can match up with him, but we’ll see, nobody beats Wes Welker very often, so we’ll see how he does.”
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