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The St. Louis Rams on Tuesday signed seventh-year veteran Isaiah Kacyvenski, the productive backup linebacker and special teams standout released by Seattle on Saturday when the Seahawks were forced to create a spot to elevate practice squad running back Marquis Weeks to the active roster.

Clayton's take
Now that he's a member of the division rival Rams a week before their Oct. 15 showdown, there are probably some people in the Seahawks organization not very pleased to see that linebacker Isaiah Kacyvenski signed a one-year contract with St. Louis. To read more of John Clayton's Quick Hits, click here.

Kacyvenski, 28, signed a one-year contract. Financial details were not yet available, but it is believed the deal is for the veteran minimum base salary, prorated over the balance of the season.

Seattle informed Kacyvenski on Friday that, because of the foot injury to reigning league most valuable player Shaun Alexander, the team was going to release him. That took place on Saturday, with Weeks then signed to the roster.

There were strong indications that Seattle wanted to re-sign Kacyvenski when Alexander was able to return to the field. But as a vested veteran, with more than four years accrued toward the NFL pension plan, Kacyvenski was free to sign with any other team, and the Rams quickly pursued him.

The decision was a difficult one for Kacyvenski, but since there is no firm timetable for Alexander's return, he did not want to be left without a job.

Kacyvenski

One of the most well-liked players on the Seattle roster during his tenure there, Kacyvenski appeared in 90 games and started in 23 of them. He has 265 tackles, one sack, three interceptions, two passes defensed, three forced fumbles and one recovery, and can play the middle and strongside linebacker spots.

On special teams, Kacyvenski has posted 83 tackles, including 21 in 2005, when Seattle advanced to Super Bowl XL. He is expected to immediately contribute on the St. Louis special teams and to assume a key role as a backup linebacker.

The former Harvard standout, who overcame poverty and the sudden death of his mother to earn an Ivy League education, was very popular with his former teammates, who had hoped to have him back later in the season.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com. To check out Len's chat archive, click here .