Changing goals

RENTON, Wash. – The goals for the NFL exhibition season aren’t quite the same as the regular season, when it’s win and nothing else really matters.

Those goals also change a little bit with each week.

In the exhibition- season opener last week at San Diego, the Seahawks wanted their starters to work up just a little bit of a sweat and begin finding learning a lot more about some of the younger players. That mission was accomplished with a 31-10 win.

The Seahawks play Game 2 of the exhibition season tonight when they face Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos at CenturyLink Field, the objectives having shifted slightly.

Here are a few items on the to-do list for tonight, besides the obvious of staying healthy:

See more consistency out of No. 1 offense and defense: This probably applies more to the offense, which didn’t score and got three first downs and 47 net yards in two series consisting of 12 plays against the Chargers.

Seattle played essentially without four starters in that game, however, and three – running back Marshan Lynch, receiver Sidney Rice and center Max Unger – all figure to play (or in the case of Lynch, who was on the field for a couple plays but didn’t get a carry, play more).

The defense was on the field for two series and 19 plays against the Chargers and gave up only three points.

Continue refining the defensive front: The area of the team that remains the most uncertain is the defensive front, in large part due to injuries to key players such as end Cliff Avril and tackle Tony McDaniel. It’s unclear whether either will play.

Rookie Jordan Hill, a third-round pick out of Penn State, was one of the revelations of the Charger win with his ability to not only play well in passing situations but also in early-down run defense.

See if young standouts of Chargers game can repeat: That game was won with a big second half fueled by a number of good performances from some younger players angling for roster spots.

But as Carroll said Friday “anybody can do something good once. Can you come back and do it again?”

One of those who may not get a chance is running back Christine Michael, who had 89 yards against the Chargers but has been dealing with back spasms this week.