Seahawks start anew

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The mantra all week was about the Seattle Seahawks’ so-called fresh start.

A 1-2 record heading into the bye week was disappointing, to be sure, but the team came out of its idle Sunday looking at the season from a whole new perspective.

“We’re coming off a big win, we had our bye, and now we’re starting the run here,” said running back Maurice Morris, one of several injured Seahawks who returned to the practice field following the Week 4 bye. “It’s time to get things done.”

There is no time like the present, even if the first step toward the Seahawks’ goal is a daunting one. Seattle returns to the field today against the Super Bowl champion New York Giants and takes an 18-26 road record since 2002 into Giants Stadium.

“It’ll be a good test against the New York Giants, playing out on the East Coast,” Seahawks linebacker Leroy Hill said. “It’ll be a good measure to see where we are.”

Of course, the Seahawks can’t just strike the first three games from their record. What the 1-2 showed was that the team lacked consistency on defense and had a long way to go in terms of an offensive passing game.

Seattle hopes that the passing game will improve through addition. Deion Branch is expected to make his first start of the season today after undergoing knee surgery in February. Slot receiver Bobby Engram is also back after missing the first three games with a shoulder injury.

Right tackle Sean Locklear and cornerback Kelly Jennings are also expected back in the starting lineup after seeing time as reserves in the St. Louis game two weeks ago.

Morris and wide receiver Koren Robinson saw limited practice time last week but are probably another week away from returning to the field in a game.

The Seahawks will take any healthy bodies they can get right about now.

“We healed up a little bit,” Seattle head coach Mike Holmgren said last week. “But we’re going into some tough ballgames here coming up. For me, it’s kind of like we’re starting again.”

In addition to lecturing his players about their fresh start, Holmgren warned them against relying too much on the returning veterans.

“People on the team can’t get the mindset of: OK, those guys are back, now we can relax,” Holmgren said on Friday, shaking his head. “We have to keep stepping it up and keep getting better at every position.”

While the Seahawks overcame some of the injuries in a Week 3 win over the hapless St. Louis Rams, the first two weeks were an entirely different story. Seattle got drubbed at Buffalo and lost a rare home game to San Francisco in Week 2, leaving the Seahawks with a 0-2 record for the first time since 2002.

Add in the ongoing injuries, especially at the receiver position, and it all made for a strange start to the 2008 season.

“It was weird, man,” Hill said. “There were guys coming in and out. Every time you pick up a new guy, you had to drop somebody. It’s like: ‘Damn, what’s-his-name’s gone.’ And then, boom: ‘Who is this?’ It was sort of like a carousel.”

Rather than point toward the myriad injuries and write off the season, the Seahawks took solace in the fact that last year’s champions, the Giants, also started off 0-2.

Now, with a win, a week of refreshment and a few bodies back in the fold, the Seahawks are feeling good about themselves for the first time since training camp.

“For the most part, we’ve got that stability now for the rest of the season,” Hill said. “All the parts are here and ready to go.”

The Seahawks also got some help during the bye week, with all three NFC West opponents losing.

“It’s only three games into the season,” Hill said. “We can only control what we do. We can’t worry about other teams winning and losing. It’ll play itself out at the end of the year. Hopefully, we’ll be a part of it. We’ll see.”

A season that could have slipped away seems to be back on track – although today’s game against a quality opponent will probably answer a few more questions.

“They’re a good team, a really good team, the Super Bowl champs,” Holmgren said. “The challenge of it, most coaches look forward to that. You look forward to competing against the best teams, and they’re the Super Bowl champs.”