By Scott M. Johnson
Herald Writer
SEATTLE – Shaun Alexander ran for 176 yards and two touchdowns in his first game as the Seahawks’ feature back, but that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. This is the kid who took his first carries in high school and college for touchdowns.
So it was almost expected that Alexander would give a little shrug as he addressed the media following the finest game of his NFL career Sunday.
“Most good running backs expect good things to happen every time they touch the ball,” Alexander said after leading the Seahawks to a 24-15 win over Jacksonville. “I kind of went into the game with that kind of attitude.”
Before the first game of his NFL career that did not include Ricky Watters, Alexander walked into the Seahawks locker room and got some words of wisdom from his injured teammate.
” ‘Are you ready? You’re going to kill them,’ ” Alexander quoted Watters as saying. “After that I was like, ‘OK, it’s going to be a good day. Whatever I do today, it’s going to be a good day.’ Knowing he had my back like that was real cool.”
Alexander didn’t take long to make an impact on the game. His first carry went for minus-2 yards, but Alexander took over from there. By halftime, he had two touchdowns and 72 rushing yards – 2 yards short of his career high. During a second half in which the Seahawks needed to control the clock, Alexander rushed 20 more times for 104 yards.
“Like any running back, when you know it’s on your shoulders you come into the game with a totally different attitude,” Alexander said. “It was awesome to have that feeling again.”
Alexander’s totals Sunday surpassed his career bests by 20 carries and 104 yards. His 31 carries were the most by a Seattle running back since 1999.
While the performance gave every indication that Alexander was well worth the 2000 first-round pick, some of the Jaguars were still wondering who had done so much damage.
“You can’t have a guy like that rush for 100 yards,” Jacksonville defensive lineman Renaldo Wynn said. “We couldn’t stop the run, and we missed a lot of tackles out there. That was the whole key to their success.”
Standing guard: After three weeks in which they gave up a league-high 18 sacks, the Seattle offensive line had its best day in terms of pass protection.
The Seahawks simplified their protection scheme, and coach Mike Holmgren challenged the unit to improve its play, resulting in a season-low two sacks by the opposition.
“You really have to play a whole game,” rookie guard Steve Hutchinson said. “You have to play as one whole unit instead of five individual guys. I think we came out today and picked up where we were lacking the last couple of weeks.”
Quarterback Trent Dilfer played a hand in the statistics because he was more elusive than Matt Hasselbeck had been in the previous three games. Dilfer took more than his share of hits early in the game, but got better protection as the game wore on.
In addition to the pass protection, the line played a part in Seattle’s strongest rushing output (185 yards) since a loss to Kansas City on Oct. 2, 2000.
“We stepped up,” center Robbie Tobeck said. “It just felt good.”
Right tackle Chris McIntosh did not play because of a neck stinger, but replacement Todd Weiner performed better than McIntosh had in the two previous games.
Special teams woes: Holmgren continues to scratch his head over a special teams unit that has been struggling this season.
The kick and punt teams gave the Seahawks offense the ball inside their own 20 on three consecutive occasions in the third quarter. Return man Charlie Rogers also fumbled twice, one of which was recovered by Jacksonville.
“I’m a little puzzled, to be quite honest,” Holmgren said. “I think we have pretty decent personnel compared to most teams, but our return game hasn’t been up to snuff.”
No controversy: While Holmgren continues to insist that Hasselbeck is the “quarterback of the future,” Dilfer made a pretty good case for himself as the team’s signal-caller of the present.
Even the Jaguars were lobbying for Dilfer after Sunday’s game.
“Trent definitely seems like he is their guy,” Wynn said. “He looked great. He was comfortable out there. I definitely give him a lot of credit.”
Quick slants: Cornerback Shawn Springs made his season debut Sunday, but was used sparingly while recovering from a hamstring injury. Springs was on the field for about 15 plays in a reserve role behind Ken Lucas and Willie Williams. Afterward, Springs proclaimed himself “the best nickel back in NFL history.” … Seattle linebacker Chad Brown now has an AFC-high 5 1/2 sacks. Brown had only six last season. … Seahawks receiver Alex Bannister suffered a concussion on the first play of the game and did not return. Reserve linebackers Marcus Bell and Tim Terry were also injured, but their status for Sunday’s game against Denver is unknown.
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