CHENEY – Call it a stretch to say that the Seattle Seahawks have been counting down the hours, but there were a few calendars in Eastern Washington University dorm rooms that had Wednesday’s date circled.
The Seahawks, who have been at training camp since Aug. 2, were ready to go home.
“I’ve been ready for three weeks,” linebacker Anthony Simmons said.
That time finally arrived Wednesday morning, when the team wrapped up a short practice, packed up the blocking sleds and headed home. The players sprinted off the field amid cold temperatures and a light drizzle just before 10 a.m.
“We had a great camp, we really did,” coach Mike Holmgren said after a third consecutive day of cold and soggy conditions. “The guys really worked hard, and the university was great to us once again. Now we have to go home, continue on, and get ready for New Orleans in a couple of weeks.”
Training camp isn’t officially over yet. The team will hold a walk-through at its Kirkland facility today, then heads to San Diego. The Seahawks face the Chargers in a preseason game Friday night before beginning practices in Kirkland next week.
With two out of four preseason games still to be played, the Seahawks are really only halfway there.
And there are still a lot of questions to be answered.
The main one involves prized free agent Grant Wistrom, who has yet to practice because of a heel injury called plantar fasciitis. He is expected to begin practicing after the San Diego game, and all indications are that he’ll be ready for the regular-season opener in New Orleans.
The bigger question is how Wistrom will affect Seattle’s pass rush. Without him, the Seahawks had a modest 40 sacks last season, including just 15 from defensive ends. That lack of a consistent pass rush carried over into this preseason, although a solid effort from the No. 2 defense has led Seattle to seven sacks in two games.
Another major question mark is at linebacker, where the Seahawks are looking for starters at two of the three positions.
Middle linebacker is up in the air, with no one stepping to the forefront among Orlando Huff, Solomon Bates and rookie Niko Koutouvides.
At strongside linebacker, the Seahawks are also looking for help following Chad Brown’s broken leg earlier this week. Isaiah Kacyvenski and Tracy White are currently splitting time there, but D.D. Lewis is expected to battle for the spot once he recovers from a sore shoulder.
The Seahawks are also still looking for a starter at strong safety, where rookie Michael Boulware is making a late push to challenge Terreal Bierria.
Despite the questions on that side of the ball, Holmgren is confident Seattle’s defense will show improvement over last season.
“No one has scored a TD on our first-team defense,” Holmgren said. “They’re tackling pretty well and doing the right thing. They’re showing their speed and athleticism.”
Offensively, training camp’s most encouraging sign was the play of tight end Jerramy Stevens. The 2002 first-round pick has moved ahead of Itula Mili into the starting lineup and appears ready for a breakout season.
“He’s had a phenomenal camp,” quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. “He’s just playing incredible. And it’s raised the level that Itula’s played too.
“If you have enough guys doing that kind of thing, it will be that much better. And I think that’s the hope of the Seahawks this year.”
Darrell Jackson also had a good camp, showing signs that he’s beyond the drops that plagued him in 2003.
“He’s had his best camp since I’ve known him,” Holmgren said. “He’s ready to have a great season.”
While the annual break of training camp comes with a collective sigh of relief, not everyone was looking at the past 24 days as a horrible experience.
“It hasn’t been bad at all,” Kacyvenski said. “It’s gone pretty quick. It hasn’t been like a chore or anything. There’s a whole different feeling around here this year.”
Not that Kacyvenski was lingering around in Cheney for an extra day or two. Like many of his teammates, Kacyvenski was excited about seeing a wife and small child back on the west side of the state.
But it won’t be all homecomings and kisses now that the Seahawks are headed home.
“The hard part is that we go back to Kirkland, and it’s still training camp,” Hasselbeck said. “It’s not back to normal; it’s just training camp in Kirkland.
“We still have a lot of work to do and a lot of long hours. But it will definitely be nice to sleep in our own beds.”
Notes: Holmgren said the No. 1 offense will play into the third quarter of Friday’s preseason game against San Diego. … Quarterback Trent Dilfer is slated to see his first action of the preseason Friday. He has missed the first two games due to back spasms. … Koutouvides will start at middle linebacker as part of a rotating system the coaches have used throughout the preseason. … Holmgren tricked the players by telling them he would be driving a silver car back to Seattle on Wednesday afternoon, threatening a $1,000 fine to anyone who passed him. “Actually,” Holmgren told the media, “I’ll be flying over. But don’t tell them that.”
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