Seahawks
Great expectations: Holmgren's sixth camp starts fast

By José Miguel Romero
Seattle Times staff reporter

ROD MAR / THE SEATTLE TIMES Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren makes a point during a gathering of his team following the second practice of the opening day of training camp.

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CHENEY — The sun was still rising in the clear, blue sky, and all but three Seahawks were on the practice fields at Eastern Washington University when he made his entrance.

And then applause. A few loud cheers.

The conductor of this football philharmonic, Mike Holmgren, appeared from out of the locker room, high-fiving and shaking fans' hands as he made his way to the fields.

Seahawks training camp opened with a mountain of optimism, a good degree of preseason hype and expectations, a crisp first practice and a few key players sidelined with minor injuries.

Not even the gusty dust storm that blew through Cheney later in the day could dissipate the feeling that Year 6 of Holmgren's tenure could be a championship season.

Publications and pundits are lining up to anoint the Seahawks as NFC champions for 2004.

Sports Illustrated's Peter King predicts a Seattle-Jacksonville Super Bowl. The Sporting News pro football preview has Denver defeating Seattle in the Super Bowl. Even Playboy has the Seahawks going deep into the postseason.

"I think it's healthy," Holmgren said of the expectations. "If they (players) can pump themselves up and get a good feeling about where we are and where they feel the team is, I think that's a healthy thing. I will always add that thinking about it and wanting it is one thing, making it happen is another. How you do that is through a lot of hard work and the things that at times aren't so much fun. I believe they understand what we need to do."

Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said that the start of camp is the time to mention the Super Bowl and then be done with such talk. His approach? First win the NFC West over what he calls the team to beat, the St. Louis Rams.
 
If the Seahawks can do that, "We have a great shot," he said.

After the morning practice, Holmgren was happy to see his players go through an up-tempo workout without need for many interruptions or play re-starts.

"We wanted to kind of ease into it as best we can," Holmgren said. "But they practiced fast, there's a real good feeling on the team and a good enthusiasm, and everyone's kind of excited about the possibilities this season. They came ready to work, and they started off just fine today."

An MRI on wide receiver Koren Robinson's sore hip showed no major problem, but he will be out for the next few days. Defensive end Grant Wistrom has a foot problem, and three other players are on the physically-unable-to-perform list and aren't likely to practice for two weeks.

But even pain couldn't keep any of those five off the field for opening day, even if all they did was run and stretch away from their teammates. The Seahawks have become a tight-knit family, and training camp seems more like an extension of offseason group workouts than a time for everyone to reconvene for two-a-day practices in the heat.

"We had so much participation in our offseason program that it didn't really feel like a first day," quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said.

"We've been doing stuff like this without coaches. ... It's not like we haven't seen these guys since the beginning of June. Guys have been around, and hopefully we can use that momentum to take the next step."

José Miguel Romero: 206-464-2409 or jromero@seattletimes.com