It is never easy for a veteran, a former standout, to take a back seat as his career winds down, but if anyone has the temperament to do it gracefully it is the easy-going defensive tackle Kimo von Oelhoffen.

A player who was a cornerstone of some outstanding Steelers defenses is now a role player. Doesn't bother him.

A player who has played in 189 games in his career – 96 straight entering this season - has only been active for four games this season. Doesn't bother him.

DT Kimo von Oelhoffen

"I love my role here, whatever it is. The hardest part is letting somebody block you every day. That's the only thing about this whole situation that gets me, 'I've got to let this guy block me,'" von Oelhoffen said. "When you get the opportunity to get out there and be able to go full speed, oh, it's lovely. It's just lovely."

With starting tackle Brodrick Bunkley sidelined with a knee injury against Seattle, von Oelhoffen got his first start of the season, and made the most of his opportunity.

His contribution didn't show up on the stat sheet – he didn't record a tackle in the game – but he did hold down the line of scrimmage and allow his linebackers to shut down Seattle's running game.

Chewing up blocks to keep linebackers clean is a rugged skill. It takes a physical player who doesn't mind being smacked around by multiple players at once, and that's a role von Oelhoffen has filled for 13 NFL seasons.

It took time to von Oelhoffen to settle into that role with Philadelphia, his fourth NFL team, but defensive coordinator Jim Johnson has seen a change in recent weeks.

"When we first had him on, we didn't see it. I think it's just learning things and learning the system," Johnson said. "He was hungry. He couldn't wait to get back on the field, and he showed it. He is a very physical player and he showed how physical he was last Sunday."

Von Oelhoffen has been around the block enough times to know how to keep himself prepared, and said that the he doesn't think the eight straight games he spent on the bench between the Week 3 win over Detroit and last week's loss to Seattle left him at all rusty.

He, like Johnson, believed it just made him hungry for live contact.

"You know, when you have played in almost 200 games and 7,000 snaps, the game is the game," von Oelhoffen said. "You can adjust to what they are doing and you know how to play blocks. It's just football."

Von Oelhoffen did wish that he could change one thing about the game – other than the final score of course. Late in the first quarter defensive end Trent Cole hit Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck from behind, knocking the ball loose.

Von Oelhoffen had the first shot at the recovery, but could only watch as the sleet-slicked ball squirted out of his hands and into the arms of Seattle's Sean Locklear.

"I was getting a little physical in there and giving as much effort as possible. I was happy with the effort," von Oelhoffen said. "But I need to make more plays. Period. I had a couple of opportunities. But the effort was alright."

The effort may have earned him some more playing time going forward. Bunkley should return to the field this Sunday against New York, but Johnson saw enough last Sunday to know that he still needs to get von Oelhoffen on the field.

"I'm really happy with the way Kimo played last week. We're going to rotate those three, (Mike) Patterson, Kimo, and Bunkley, in there quite a bit," Johnson said. "Kimo did an excellent job against the run and he's a very physical player. I think we're probably going to use him more this week."

This time von Oelhoffen won't have eight weeks of pent-up aggression to unleash, but he also won't have to let anybody block him. No matter how easy-going he is, that's still a relief.