RENTON — While the Seattle Seahawks head into Sunday’s game with a little momentum following a second straight victory, their opponent is in a very different position.
The Washington Redskins, who come to Seattle this weekend with a 3-7 record, are only one game worse than the Seahawks according to the standings, but the way the two teams have gotten to where they are 10 games into the season couldn’t be more different. The Seahawks, after losing three in a row, bounced back with a victory over Baltimore, one of the AFC’s top teams, then won handily on the road last week against St. Louis. Suddenly the young Seahawks look like a team on the rise — one that, while unlikely to make the playoffs, is in position to finish the season strong.
The Redskins meanwhile, have lost six in a row, completely killing the momentum they had early in the season after a surprising 3-1 start. Their current losing streak is the longest endured by the franchise since 1998, and they don’t play an opponent with a losing record again until Week 16. Along the way Washington benched starting quarterback Rex Grossman — who, as it turns out, came down with pneumonia during his time off — before giving him his job back two weeks ago. A change at quarterback didn’t end Washington’s losing streak, though Grossman did play well in last week’s loss to Dallas.
Grossman, who like his team has had his ups and downs this year, summed up his and his team’s season quite succinctly while on a conference call with the Seattle-area media.
“We were off to a 3-1 start, now we’re 3-7 and I had pneumonia,” he said. “This whole thing just (stinks).”
Rough start or not, the Redskins feel like they can still turn things around over the next six games. A big step toward that goal will be improving on offense, Grossman said.
“We’ve got to put points on the board early,” he said. “In our six-game losing streak, we’ve been behind pretty much from the get-go. Our defense is pretty damn good. If we get them the lead, I think it will just help the flow of the game a lot better. Then just in general, our point production is not going to win you games. So generally speaking, we’ve got to put at least 24 points on the board to feel good about ourselves and to give us a chance to win week in and week out.”
Getting 24 points might prove difficult, however, against a confident Seahawks defense that has played very well in back-to-back wins. Two weeks ago, Seattle’s season appeared to be heading down the drain, but that upset of the Ravens, followed by a convincing win in St. Louis, has the Seahawks looking at their season differently.
“To me the season is just starting — and we haven’t done anything yet — but the opportunity to capture what it takes on a week-to-week basis and the focus and the attention to detail is at hand right now,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. “That’s why each one of these weeks are so cool and exciting to go after it again. Can we do it again? Can we find all of the right elements that it takes to execute a play really well with a young bunch of guys? They can feel it. They can sense that something is going on and it’s turning, so I’m just hoping that we can corral it and keep it in-house and do a good job with everything.”
Yet even as the Seahawks and Redskins appear to be heading in different directions, nobody in a Seattle uniform expects an easy victory Sunday. If anything, Washington’s recent struggles make the Redskins a more dangerous opponent.
“Just imagine how hungry they are,” Carroll said. “They played so hard last week and didn’t get one, so we’re taking this like it’s a huge matchup for us and a very difficult game. You can’t imagine how hard they’re going to play and how much they want to win.”
Injury report
Receiver Sidney Rice, who sat out the previous two days of practice with a sore knee, was a full participant Friday and is “ready to go,” Carroll said. Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson, who continues to deal with a pectoral injury, was able to practice fully for the second day in a row, which was an added bonus, as he was expected to need another day of rest. Both Rice and Jackson are listed as probable for Sunday’s game, as are receiver Ben Obomanu (ankle/knee), safety Atari Bigby (hamstring) and defensive end Anthony Hargrove (hamstring).
Defensive tackle Alan Branch and cornerback Byron Maxwell are both listed as questionable with ankle injuries after not practicing all week. If Branch can’t play, Clinton McDonald will start in his place.
Herald Writer John Boyle: jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more Seahawks coverage, check out the Seahawks blog at heraldnet.com/seahawksblog.
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