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 Receiver Deion Branch is finally set to make his season debut, the Seahawks announced Friday. The Associated Press
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Seahawks Notebook: Branch cleared to start against Giants
Saturday, October 4, 2008 7:38 PM PDT
By Gregg Bell
The Associated Press
Printable version
E-mail this articleRENTON, Wash. — A noticeably large gang of eight healthy receivers walked off the practice field, smiling. That’s five more than the Seahawks had just a few weeks ago.
Deion Branch and Bobby Engram were grinning because both will finally be making their season debuts on Sunday when Seattle (1-2) plays at the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants (3-0).
Branch, a former Super Bowl MVP, is starting almost eight months to the day after he had reconstructive knee surgery.
“I’m ready,” he said.
Engram, who set the team record with 94 receptions last season, hasn’t played since breaking his right shoulder in the first exhibition game on Aug. 8.
Both passed the tests of three consecutive practice days that coach Mike Holmgren needed to see before declaring them ready for the Giants.
“They really did have a good week. Now, how much they play in the football game, we kind of have to see,” Holmgren said after Friday’s short, light practice just before the team flew east. “They’ll be honest about it, they’ll let us know. They’ll be excited to play again and they’ll probably be gasping a little bit just from being out there again ... so we have to be smart with how with do that.”
Branch will start opposite Keary Colbert or Billy McMullen, acquired last month when the Seahawks had six receivers hurt. Engram will be in his normal role as the slot receiver.
That makes quarterback Matt Hasselbeck smile, too.
“Bobby brings experience and calmness to our offense,” said Hasselbeck, who spent much of September at the bottom of the league’s passer rankings. “He is just a very steady guy and makes plays.”
Remember him?
Koren Robinson, a third receiver brought in to much fanfare to rescue the ailing position, did only brief running on a side field with a trainer nearby to test his injured right knee. He is listed as questionable for Sunday, though it doesn’t appear Holmgren’s former No. 1 draft choice for Seattle will make his season debut. He has practiced only briefly this week, on Wednesday.
Robinson’s knee was hurting when he joined the Seahawks last month. Trying to rush into his first game five days after he signed a one-year contract aggravated that pain. Now the team is being cautious.
Holmgren said he is concerned “if I, in my haste to push him out there, and in our need to push him out there, that we’d really make a very minor injury a big injury. I don’t want to do that.
“Now that we have some players, our receiver situation is better,” the coach added. “The pile is bigger. I can afford to do this this way if I don’t play him and just rest him, let him really heal up. It’s not a bad injury, but it’s preventing him from really cutting it loose. He has to do that at that position.”
When asked if he thinks Robinson can still be a major contributor this season, the troubled receiver’s longtime supporter said: “I hope so. But we’ll see. The other guys are coming along nicely and we’ll see. I would like him to.”
Jones again
Running back Maurice Morris is also questionable. He hasn’t played since spraining his knee in the season opener at Buffalo on Sept. 7, and he only watched Friday’s practice.
That means Julius Jones will likely get most of the runs on Sunday. Jones is coming off his first back-to-back 100-yard games since 2006, when he was Dallas’ lead back.
Since those games — three consecutive 100-yard romps from Oct. 1-15, 2006 — Jones has just 176 yards rushing combined in five games against New York, with no rushing touchdowns.
His only 100-yard rushing game against the Cowboys’ former division rivals came in his first game against them, on Jan. 2, 2005. He ran 29 times for 149 yards and a touchdown to end his rookie regular season.
Bumpus back
Holmgren said Michael Bumpus, the undrafted rookie from Washington State, will again return punts on Sunday.
Bumpus has 66 yards returning seven punts — the longest 30 yards. He muffed a punt in the previous game against St. Louis while trying to make a reaching catch over his shoulder, but Holmgren calls Bumpus “a safe catcher.”
Bumpus got the job when Nate Burleson went on injured reserve with a knee injury after the first game.
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