KIRKLAND – If Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has trouble sleeping Sunday night, it might have something to do with his visions of 2001.
That was the first time Hasselbeck faced the Philadelphia Eagles, and the results weren’t pretty. In one of the worst performances of his NFL career, Hasselbeck completed just 9 of 24 passes for 62 yards. Making matters worse, he was sacked seven times.
While he fared slightly better in a 2002 rematch – he threw for 223 yards, but was 9 for 18 for 69 yards and two interceptions in the first half of that game before a second-half rally fell short – Hasselbeck is bracing for another painful evening when the teams square off Monday night in Philadelphia.
“Sometimes they blitz a lot, and sometimes they don’t,” he said this week. “We have to be ready for all things. I think you prepare for the blitz, and if they blitz, you’re ready; if they don’t, then that’s fine too.”
Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson’s blitz package has given the Seahawks fits over the years. Hasselbeck has gotten sacked 11 total times, and his 2001 game was so painful that a shoulder injury sidelined him for a game against Jacksonville two weeks later.
“I believe he is a better quarterback now going through that experience,” Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said of Seattle’s 27-3 loss in 2001. “But it was tough going through it. He survived. He’s alive, you know.”
This year, the Eagles rank in the middle of the league in sacks, and their total of 25 is 11 fewer than the Seahawks’. But Seattle knows it will have its hands full again with Philadelphia’s defensive pressure.
“Every team poses a different problem,” Seahawks offensive lineman Steve Hutchinson said. “They’ve got big guys up front, they’ve got linebackers who can run and (defensive backs) who can bring the heat on a blitz too.
“Every week, you’ve got something, and you’ve just got to go out there and handle it.”
Jackson runs: Darrell Jackson went through a workout with trainers on Friday, and Holmgren is encouraged that the wide receiver could be back as soon as next week.
“We’ll see how the knee responds (over the weekend),” Holmgren said. “And if it’s going good, we’ll keep our fingers crossed and maybe he comes back next week.”
Jackson has not played since Oct. 2, when knee soreness led him to eventually undergo surgery. He was originally expected to miss four to six weeks, but Holmgren said earlier this week that part of the delay came from the fact that Jackson actually had two procedures done.
Friday marked the first time the receiver ran.
“When it happens,” Holmgren said of Jackson’s eventual return, “it would help us.”
Fisher, Darby expected to play: Although they missed the entire week of practice, starting defensive linemen Bryce Fisher and Chartric Darby are expected to play, Holmgren said Friday.
Fisher has been wearing a boot to protect a sore left foot all week, but Holmgren is optimistic that he’ll be available for Monday’s game against Philadelphia.
“Fisher will play,” he said. “I’m pretty sure he’ll play. We’ll test it (during a practice today). He’s feeling better and better and better. I think giving him some time off was the right thing to do, clearly.”
Darby has been nursing a sore knee that has hobbled him at practices for the past two weeks. But he, too, is expected to play Monday. He’ll be joined in the starting lineup by defensive tackle Marcus Tubbs, who missed the past three games with a strained calf muscle.
Holmgren will go with Tubbs over Rocky Bernard, who has four sacks over the past three weeks and 8 for the season, because the starting duo of Darby and Tubbs plays well together.
“Darby and Tubbs are like Abbott and Costello,” Holmgren said Friday. “They’re kind of joined at the hip, and if we split them up, it might cause some friction.”
Missing out: A part of Holmgren will undoubtedly wish he didn’t have to be in the locker room for halftime this Monday.
For the second consecutive road game, one of Holmgren’s former players will be honored in a halftime ceremony. The San Francisco 49ers presented former quarterback Steve Young with a Hall of Fame ring two weeks ago, and now the Eagles will have a ceremony in honor of former defensive end Reggie White.
White passed away almost a year ago due to heart failure. He was 43 years old.
“Reggie was a special man in my life,” Holmgren said Friday when asked about the former Eagle, Green Bay Packer and Carolina Panther. “We were together (with the Packers in 1996 and 1997) for something very, very special in the Super Bowl. I got to know him very well – he and his family.
“It was a very sad day when he passed on. He was a great football player, a great person. My life is better for having known him.”
What about Jay Feely?: Game balls from last Sunday’s win over the New York Giants went to wide receiver Joe Jurevicius (offense), middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu (defense) and punter Tom Rouen (special teams).
Holmgren also presented offensive lineman Chris Gray with a special game ball commemorating his 100th consecutive regular-season start, which happened two weeks ago. Gray has the longest regular-season streak in Seahawks history, although he did miss the playoff game in Green Bay two years ago due to an ankle injury.
Quick slants: Jurevicius (illness) and linebacker D.D. Lewis (knee) returned to practice Friday and are expected to start against the Eagles on Monday. … Holmgren continues to praise Tatupu, who is on pace to become the first Seahawks rookie to lead the team in tackles since Terry Beeson in 1977. “He really, in my opinion, is a rookie-of-the-year candidate,” Holmgren said. “We’re asking him to do a whole bunch. He’s on the field a lot, and we’re hanging in there.”
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
