Alexander hopes to outrun age issue

KIRKLAND — The excitement makes Shaun Alexander feel young again.

"Like a little rookie," he said.

Except Alexander is 30 now, older than all but three other starting running backs in the NFL, and the feeling is as much about urgency as anticipation.

He's coming off a season in which he suffered the most significant injury of his professional career and is eager to make up for lost time. Maybe too eager.

"I've been a little too excited early in games," Alexander said, "just trying to do too much."

His motor revved too high, the gears ground together and the Seahawks fell behind twice. Five yards on four carries in the first quarter against Tampa Bay as Seattle trailed 6-0. Ten yards on eight carries in the first half in Arizona as the Seahawks fell behind 17-0 before trailing 17-7 at the half.

Seattle's scoring picked up about the time his running did. Alexander's legs served as a weathervane for the Seahawks' offense the first two games, for better and for worse, and that's fitting because this city's opinions have always tended to be divided over Alexander.

Some call him soft, others say savvy. Some see a running back gun-shy about contact, others call him a home-run hitter looking for that crack in the defense so he can cut it back.

People don't have opinions about him so much as they have beliefs, heartfelt and tightly held.

The Seahawks made their act of faith a year and a half ago. They cast their lot with Alexander by re-signing him to a contract that will pay him more than $20 million by the time next season ends. The deal amounted to a bet Alexander would beat the odds. That he could be that rarest of things in the NFL — a running back who stays productive into his 30s.

Then he broke his foot last year, missed six games and saw his average per carry drop to 3.6 yards. It's the kind of decline that signaled the end for so many elite backs.

"His numbers last year were not good, in his mind," coach Mike Holmgren said. "And he was hurt. And so he is bound and determined to fix that."

Alexander stayed in Seattle this offseason and reported to training camp looking leaner. Holmgren repeatedly praised the conditioning of his running back.

"He might be as ready to play as I've ever seen him ready to play," Holmgren said.

Yet he failed two third-and-one conversions in the first game against Tampa Bay, something that never happened during his Most Valuable Player season in 2005.

He didn't have a run longer than 3 yards in the first half Sunday in Arizona and then was part of the snafu that resulted in a fumble on Seattle's final offensive play.

But Holmgren doesn't see a difference between Alexander this season and the back who set the season touchdown record in 2005.

"To me, he's the same guy," Holmgren said.

Same smile for Alexander. Same undiluted optimism. Same production? That's the question.

The Web site FootballOutsiders.com broke down the numbers all the way back to 1978 and found that Alexander became the second running back to have his rushing average drop more than 1.5 yards at age 29 or older in a season with 200 or more carries. The other one was Barry Sanders in 1998. He never played again.

Broaden the criteria a little bit to find players like Mike Anderson of Denver, who had a productive season at age 32, and Jerome Bettis, who bounced back in Pittsburgh.

The exceptions only reinforce the rule that when a back experiences a precipitous decline like Alexander at his age, they usually don't rebound. Runners like Curtis Martin, Priest Holmes and Herschel Walker exit abruptly.

That leaves Alexander running against the current of history as he tries to carry the Seahawks back to the Super Bowl.

"Shaun will be fine," Holmgren said. "He is going to have a good year"

That's as much a statement of faith as a prediction, one that must come true if the Seahawks are going to fulfill the lofty expectations for this season.

Notes

• Five Seahawks did not practice Thursday because of injury. WRs D.J. Hackett and Ben Obomanu and RB Maurice Morris have not practiced all week. They were joined by TE Ben Joppru, who injured his left ankle in practice Wednesday and wore a protective boot and was on crutches Thursday; and LB Kevin Bentley, who has a back injury. RT Sean Locklear (knee) was back to full participation.

• Players intercepted five passes in practice Thursday. Two of the interceptions were by safety Mike Green.

Danny O'Neil: 206-464-2364 or doneil@seattletimes.com; Seattle Times staff reporter José Miguel Romero contributed to this report.