Branch injures heel

Published 11:04 pm Sunday, October 5, 2008

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Deion Branch got off to a nice start Sunday afternoon.

The way his afternoon finished seemed all too familiar.

Branch, a Seattle Seahawks receiver who was making his 2008 debut following February knee surgery, played almost every offensive snap of the first half Sunday before leaving the game with an injured heel.

Coach Mike Holmgren said after the game that the injury will probably cost Branch some more playing time in upcoming weeks.

“I hope Branch isn’t gone for too long,” Holmgren said.

While Branch’s injury marred the comeback, his return, along with that of fellow receiver Bobby Engram, served as welcome ones.

Both players made an impact in Sunday’s 44-6 loss, even though the offense struggled for most of the day.

Engram had a game-high eight receptions for 61 yards in his first action of the season, while Branch added three receptions for 31 yards before getting hurt.

“Obviously, having them back (at practice) has been fun the past two weeks,” said quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, whose only other completion outside of those to Engram and Branch came on a screen pass to running back Julius Jones. “It’s just disappointing to come all this way and play the way we did. We played very poorly, and neither one of those guys are very happy right now.”

Engram had been out with a cracked shoulder bone he suffered in a preseason game. He was on the field for 33 plays Sunday, including the first nine offensive snaps while Seattle ran three-receiver sets. Engram fell right back into the familiar role of Hasselbeck’s go-to receiver.

“I was hoping that would be the case,” he said. “But some of that was due to the circumstances. I felt good, and it was good to make some plays, but it’s tough to feel good about anything after a loss like that.”

Branch felt even worse, having physically suffered another setback.

“You never expect that kind of thing to happen,” fullback Leonard Weaver said. “You never want to see it happen, but we have to go back to the drawing board and see where we stand.”

Scare for Hasselbeck: As if a 1-2 record and a slow start weren’t bad enough early Sunday, the Seahawks’ season almost hit another new low early in the first quarter.

Hasselbeck hurt his knee on the Seahawks’ first series, leaving him rolling on the turf while writhing in agony.

“I was in a lot of pain,” Hasselbeck said of the hyperextended knee he suffered less than 90 seconds into the game.

Hasselbeck eventually returned to the field for Seattle’s next series without missing a single play in the first half. Afterward, he walked without a visible limp and said that his knee felt better.

“I dodged a bullet, I think,” he said, “so I’m not overly concerned with that.”

Hasselbeck came out of the game late in the third quarter, but that had more to do with the Seahawks’ big deficit than it did his injury.

He will probably be re-evaluated today.

“I think he’s going to be fine,” Holmgren said.

Wilson struggles: Starting cornerback Kelly Jennings didn’t look very good in his limited action Sunday, giving up a long touchdown pass on the Giants’ opening drive.

But after Jennings suffered a concussion a few minutes later by way of a collision with teammate Leroy Hill, things really got bad for the Seattle secondary.

Second-year player Josh Wilson, who fared well in his first start two weeks ago, got picked on all afternoon as the Giants piled up 272 passing yards. Wilson gave up more than 100 of those yards while being thrown at nine times for seven completions.

“They had a couple successful passes,” Wilson said. “Until you put the fire out, they’re going to keep putting wood on the fire. They were successful on a couple passes early, and they kept doing it.”

Vacation blues: The Giants solved their bye-week blues on Sunday.

The Seahawks, of course, did not.

Seattle is now 2-8 during the Holmgren era in games immediately after the bye. The Giants’ Tom Coughlin improved his record to 2-4 in post-bye games. New York has an all-time record of 5-15 in game after the bye.

Morris, Taylor sit: Running back Maurice Morris and wide receiver Courtney Taylor were among seven inactive Seahawks for Sunday’s game, although for different reasons.

Morris is still recovering from the knee sprain he suffered in the season opener. Taylor, who started the Seahawks’ first two games this season, has been demoted.

Wide receiver Koren Robinson also sat out the game because of knee soreness. He has yet to play in a game during his second stint with the Seahawks.

No need for punt returner: Michael Bumpus was not among the Seahawks’ seven inactive players on Sunday, but he might as well have been.

Seattle’s punt return man didn’t even take the field until midway through the third quarter, thanks to the New York Giants’ mistake-free offense. Giants punter Jeff Feagles punted for the first time with 8:41 left in the third quarter. That was after New York had already piled up 431 yards and 34 points.

Bumpus was in punt formation only twice, watching one Jeff Feagles kick go out of bounds and the other land in the Seattle end zone.

Historical loss: Holmgren hasn’t experienced anything like Sunday’s game in a long time.

It marked the most-lopsided loss of his head coaching career and the worst since watching the Giants beat his San Francisco 49ers 44-3 in a 1987 playoff game.

Holmgren’s worst loss as Seahawks coach, before Sunday, was a 37-6 loss to the Chicago Bears in Week 4 of the 2006 season.

The Giants’ 38-point margin of victory marked that franchise’s most lopsided regular-season win since Nov. 1972, when New York beat Philadelphia 62-10.

Quick slants: Through four games this season, Seattle’s defense has forced just three turnovers. The only interception came when safety Deon Grant picked off a Marc Bulger pass in the Week 3 win over St. Louis. … Sunday’s game snapped Seattle’s eight-game winning streak against NFC East teams. Three of those were playoff victories. … Seahawks linebacker Leroy Hill had his left knee wrapped up late in the first half, but he returned to the field and finished the game. Two Giant starters, offensive lineman Kareem McKenzie and wide receiver Domenik Hixon, weren’t as fortunate period. Both left the game with concussions and did not return.