Hasselbeck likely out for Seahawks

Hasselbeck likely out for Seahawks
Frye expected to start at QB
By CLARE FARNSWORTH
P-I REPORTER

RENTON -- The No. 3 quarterback is the NFL equivalent of a spare tire.

No one pays him much attention. He gets almost no reps in practice. And when needed, you just hope he's got enough in him to get the job done.

That likely will be the case Sunday, when the Seahawks (1-3) host the Green Bay Packers (2-3) in a must-win game for both teams at Qwest Field.

Charlie Frye is expected to start his first regular-season game for the Seahawks because Matt Hasselbeck's hyperextended right knee still is sore enough to put him at risk if he tries to play -- and backup Seneca Wallace continues to nurse the calf injury he aggravated during a walkthrough Wednesday.

"It appears as though Charlie is going to play in the game," coach Mike Holmgren said Friday after practice.

Holmgren stopped short of ruling Hasselbeck out, saying it would be a game-day decision. But, after heaving a heavy sigh, he offered, "I made the statement (Wednesday) that if he didn't practice all week he could play on Sunday. But I've got to feel like he is not too vulnerable out there. That's the main thing."

Hasselbeck's leg has not responded well to treatment and remains sore.

"He can't do much with his leg," Holmgren said. "It's not ligaments, it's not anything like that. It's just sore. He's restricted. We're just not going to put him at risk out there. That's the main thing."

Hasselbeck's situation caught the Seahawks by surprise. He was expecting to practice Friday, and everyone from Holmgren to offensive coordinator Gil Haskell to wide receiver Bobby Engram to Hasselbeck was expecting him to play.

Hasselbeck has played with a pulled groin, a separated shoulder, a bruised thigh, a sprained knee, broken fingers and -- this season -- a sore back.

Friday, despite not practicing, Hasselbeck was on the field, referring to a play-call list in his hand and conferring with quarterbacks coach Bill Lazor -- indicators Hasselbeck would play.

Then came Holmgren's announcement.

"It's a bit of a surprise. As a player, you're thinking, 'Ah, Matt's tough. He's a tank. He doesn't miss many games,' " said Engram, who had eight receptions last week against the New York Giants in his return from a shoulder injury.

"I think that he thought he would have a real shot at playing. I guess they're looking at what's best for him and what's best for the team in the long run."

Losing Hasselbeck comes at a time when the team is finally getting healthier -- a relative term in this injury-plagued season -- at wide receiver. Engram and Koren Robinson are the likely starters Sunday, and will be the fifth starting tandem the team has used in as many games.

Now, it appears they'll be catching passes not from the starter or the backup, but from Frye -- with Wallace as the No. 2 quarterback after he was able to limp through practice while running the scout team Friday.

"All three quarterbacks are capable of running the same game plan," Holmgren said. "The volume, and maybe some of the subtleties that you would use with Matt, you might not use with the other two guys. But the basic game plan is pretty much the same."

Frye has not started a regular-season game since the 2007 opener while with the Cleveland Browns, and he doesn't even count that because he was pulled after the first quarter. Two days later, he was traded to the Seahawks. But he did start 13 games for the Browns in 2006 and five in '05.

"You can lean on that, but this is a different offense," Frye said.

Frye started the second and third preseason games for the Seahawks this summer. He also got all the reps in practice this week with the Seahawks offense.

"It doesn't seem that long ago that I played," Frye said. "I can lean back on that as the experience part of it. But I thought practice went pretty well this week. I was throwing the ball pretty well."

Even that came at a cost: Frye's voice.

"I managed to lose my voice out there," he said. "This is probably the most I've talked in a long time this week."

Sunday, he'll be the talk of the town. One way, or the other.


SEAHAWKS VS. PACKERS

WHEN/WHERE: Sunday, 1:15 p.m., Qwest Field

TV: KCPQ/13; Chris Rose, J.C. Pearson, Nischelle Turner

RADIO: KIRO-AM/710 and KIRO-FM/97.3; Steve Raible, Warren Moon, Akemi Takei

RECORDS: Seattle 1-3, Green Bay 2-3

MATCHUP MICROSCOPE: Seahawks CB Marcus Trufant vs. Packers WR Greg Jennings, above. The Seahawks' suddenly sieve-like secondary also will have to contend with receiver Donald Driver (19 receptions, two touchdowns). But the Packers' better option has become Jennings (29 receptions, 19.6-yard average, TD catches of 48, 25 and 25 yards). He's especially dangerous on slants and other quick routes because of his run-after-the-catch ability and already has 11 receptions of 20-plus yards. The Seahawks' best option in trying to contain Jennings is Trufant, who draws the backhanded compliment of playing better than anyone else in the secondary.

ONE TO WATCH: Seahawks RB Julius Jones. Will the streak continue? Jones has played four games at Qwest Field and has four 100-yard rushing performances (two this season; two while playing for the Cowboys). This week, coach Mike Holmgren said he's leaning toward the run game. Not a bad idea with the prospect of Charlie Frye starting for sore-kneed QB Matt Hasselbeck and throwing to the fifth set of starting receivers in as many games -- likely Koren Robinson and Bobby Engram. The Packers are allowing averages of 161.4 rushing yards per game and 5.1 yards per carry, and have yielded a 100-yard rusher in four of their first five games.

FUN TO WATCH: Packers RB Ryan Grant vs. Seahawks MLB Lofa Tatupu. They're both playing hurt -- Tatupu with a cast on his right hand and also a sore knee; Grant with a tender hamstring. They each had Jekyll-and-Hyde performances the last time these teams met in that Lambeau snowstorm which blanketed their divisional playoff game in January. Grant fumbled on the Packers' first two possessions -- with Tatupu recovering the first one to help the Seahawks take a 14-0 lead. But Grant then went off for 201 yards and three touchdowns to ignite the Packers' 42-20 rout.

NOTABLE: The Seahawks are looking to avoid their first 1-4 start since 2002, when they went 1-5 before winning six of their final 10 games. ... The Packers have won nine of their past 12 road games. ... The Packers lead the NFL with four touchdowns on returns, including two by CB Charles Woodson (interceptions) and one each by FS Nick Collins (interception) and Will Blackmon (punt). ... Seahawks DE Patrick Kerney has four sacks and last season led the NFC with 14 1/2 , but he went without a tackle in the playoff game while working against Packers OT Mark Tauscher. ... Packers QB Aaron Rodgers is playing with a sprained right shoulder, but he threw three TD passes last week and has five of 20-plus yards this season to share the league lead. ... The Packers OT tandem of Chad Clifton (116) and Tauscher (112) has a combined 228 NFL starts, second-most in the league. Sitting at No. 3 with 215 is the Seahawks' duo of Walter Jones (172) and Sean Locklear (43).

LINE: Packers by 1

P-I PICK: Packers 23, Seahawks 16




http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/football/382768_hawkbar11.html

WITHOUT OUR STARTING QUARTERBACK I DON'T THINK THIS TEAM WILL BE SUCCESSFUL, IT LOOKS LIKE HASSELBECK WILL BE OUT AGAIN THIS WEEK, AND GOING INTO A GAME WITH AN OPPONENT LIKE TAMPA BAY, THAT MAY NOT BE A BAD IDEA TO KEEP HIM OUT, IN FACT JUST KEEP HIM OUT FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON. WE ARE ALREADY 1-4 why risk our starting quarterback? SORRY JUST RANTING A LITTLE BIT LOL.