Seahawks wide receiver Courtney Taylor could catch starting job

RENTON — The opportunity to start at flanker is at Courtney Taylor's fingertips.

He just hasn't had a chance to catch it. At least not yet.

That has more to do with the number of passes thrown his way in the Seahawks' first two exhibition games, as he's still waiting for his first reception.

Same goes for Ben Obomanu, who also hasn't caught a pass. Expect that to change over the final half of Seattle's exhibition season.

"I want to see Courtney touch the ball, Ben touch the ball," coach Mike Holmgren said. "I think they're just as capable. We have to sort that out, so we're going to kind of try and force-feed that just a little bit to see how we're going to line up the first game."

The receiver position remains wide open. Taylor is just waiting for the passes to start coming his way.

"I'm a competitive dude," he said. "And of course I want to get my hands on some [passes] and do what I do best."

So far, the only time Taylor has touched the ball was when he took a handoff and ran around the edge of the defense, gaining 13 yards in the Aug. 8 exhibition at Minnesota.

Taylor has been working as the flanker with the first-unit offense, the position played by Deion Branch last season.

Branch is recovering from offseason knee surgery, and while the hope was he might be ready for Week 1 of the regular season, Holmgren said Wednesday he didn't have a timeline for his return.

"The important thing is how he feels about it," Holmgren said. "You come off that particular surgery, it's a bugger. It's tough."

The team has the option of leaving Branch on the physically unable to perform list to start the regular season. He would not count against the 53-man roster while on that list, but he also would not be eligible to be activated until the team's seventh game. Holmgren said it's too early to start discussing that option.

In addition to Branch's injury, the Seahawks are without last season's leading receiver, Bobby Engram, who suffered a broken shoulder against Minnesota that may keep him out until October.

That leaves Nate Burleson as the only receiver at practice who caught more than 15 passes for the Seahawks last season. After two exhibition games, undrafted free agent Michael Bumpus and second-year receiver Jordan Kent lead the Seahawks with five receptions apiece.

"Jordan Kent has had some touches, and he has become a media darling," Holmgren said. "But he's had more opportunities."

The chances figure to increase for Taylor in the final two exhibitions, and the receiver is ready to grab hold of those opportunities.

"It hasn't been to the point that I lost faith or anything," he said. "When the ball comes to me, take advantage of that and make some plays."

A question of returns

The absences of Engram and Branch leave Burleson as the No. 1 receiver in Seattle's offense, which means he's not among the considerations for punt returners.

Justin Forsett, Josh Wilson and Obomanu have worked out at the position in practice, and Seneca Wallace and Marcus Trufant are capable of catching punts. Forsett has returned six punts and three kickoffs this preseason, the heaviest workload on the roster. He returned a punt for 40 yards and a kickoff for 37 against Chicago last Saturday and showed great instincts in that part of the game.

"The best returners, a lot of times, are running backs," said special-teams coach Bruce DeHaven. "They've got the skill, they see things and cut back, and usually they've got the toughness to run reckless, which you want your returners to do. They're just out there, running with the ball."

Note

• The Seahawks did not practice Thursday. Holmgren gave the team the day off to conclude the two-a-day practice portion of Seattle's training camp. The team will practice once daily beginning today at 1:30 p.m.

Danny O'Neil: 206-464-2364 or doneil@seattletimes.com