Seahawks won’t rest on their laurels

KIRKLAND, Wash. – Chris Gray understands the arguments for and against the Seattle Seahawks starters resting in the regular-season finale.

But to him – and realize that Gray has missed just one start in the last eight years and holds the team record of 121 consecutive starts – the idea of not playing when you can play is sort of silly.

“If you are not excited playing the game, if you don’t get the jitters before the game, something’s wrong,” Gray, the Seahawks’ starting right guard, said on Wednesday.

“It is still fun to play, it really is. Practices are tough … but I look forward to Sundays. Sundays are fun.”

Gray admits coaches have it tough when trying to figure what to do when there’s one game left and there’s nothing left to do to improve the team’s playoff standing.

The Seahawks, who travel to Atlanta on Sunday to face the 3-12 Falcons, have already clinched the No. 3 spot in the NFC. Regardless of what happens against the Falcons, Seattle will host a first-round game and then take to the road in the next round should they win their opener.

Coach Mike Holmgren said the plan is to approach this game like any other. He did say players with injuries, such as left tackle Walter Jones and defensive tackle Rocky Bernard, will not be pushed out on the field and quarterback Matt Hasselbeck would likely be relieved if the game develops like last week’s did against Baltimore.

“I believe in momentum going into the playoffs. I do believe in that,” Holmgren said. “At the same time, everyone holds their breath that no one gets hurt. So how do you balance that? …

“So what we’re going to do, we’re going to practice hard this week. We’re going to play the guys hard. They are approaching it that way. And keep our fingers crossed.”

One reason Holmgren wants to see his offensive starters play is because the running game showed life in the 27-6 win over the Ravens. The Seahawks rushed for a season-high 144 yards with Shaun Alexander gaining 73 – the most he’s had since gaining 78 against San Francisco back on Sept. 30.

Holmgren and Gray agree that it’s important to keep that momentum going. Alexander, who’s still bothered by a sore wrist, said if the offense can be improved by playing, then the risk of injury is worth it.

“It’s the last game of the season so you always want to get things going,” Alexander said. “For us, it’s more important just to make sure that we have everything ready to go for the playoffs. We want to have a good showing, but it’s not the end of the world.”

But it is the end of the season. For some players like Gray, that means a little bit closer to being a former football player.

Gray, 37, thought about retiring after the 2006 season. Instead he re-upped with the Seahawks and has one more year to go on the two-year deal he signed last spring.

Not that it matters. He said he will assess his situation at the end of the season, just like he’s been doing for years now.

“I’m closer to the end than the beginning,” Gray said. “We’ll see. It might be one more year, it might be two more years or it might be this year. You never know.”

What keeps him going, he said, is the chance of getting back to the Super Bowl.

Gray said the Seahawks’ chances are greatly improved if they can stay healthy and get their running game figured out.

“I never planned to play 15 years, and I’ve been blessed,” Gray said. “I’ve had my share of injuries but nothing debilitating or that kind of thing. I always say I’m just icing the cake right now, but to put a Super Bowl on it – that would be nice.”