Notebook: Alexander appears confident on deal

KIRKLAND — Shaun Alexander is coming back to Seattle.

This weekend, perhaps. And when he gets here from his private workouts in Alabama, the Seahawks' minicamp will have ended.

Not that Alexander would have reported to practice even if he had been in town. He has yet to sign the one-year franchise tender, hoping rather that his agent and the Seahawks will agree to a long-term deal or that the Seahawks will trade him.

The Seahawks talked to other teams before the draft last month, but nothing materialized. The Seahawks can't negotiate with Alexander until July 15, but coaches are hopeful that he will be at training camp in late July — under a long-term contract or the $6.32 million tender.

"I'm asking him to come in," running backs coach Stump Mitchell said. "I'm like, 'Shaun, we got 1,700 (rushing) yards last year; we probably can get 2,000 this year.' But he just laughs at that and says he thinks we're going to get something done in early July and be there for training camp."

Without Alexander in practice, Maurice Morris and Kerry Carter are getting snaps — Morris with the No. 1 offense.

Movie day

The Seahawks — coaches, players and some staff — enjoyed an afternoon at the movies yesterday after practice. They packed a local theater for an advance screening of "The Longest Yard," which is due to be released nationally on May 27.

Coach Mike Holmgren thanked the players for their hard work in practice, then the lights went out and laughter was hearty. The film stars Adam Sandler and Chris Rock and features appearances by former NFL players Michael Irvin, Bill Romanowski and ex-Seahawk Brian Bosworth.

The movie outing took the place of team meetings, and coaches were happy to see all of the players there because it fosters team unity.

In the hunt to punt

Fresh off a rookie season that saw him on the practice squad one week, then punting against the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots the next, Donnie Jones is out to win the job permanently.

Jones was drafted with that in mind. The 2004 seventh-round pick learned from last year's punters, Tom Rouen and Ken Walter, and punted in six games after Rouen went down with a hamstring injury. Now he's ready to make a play for the full-time job.

Leo Araguz, 35, and rookie free agent Chris Kluwe are also on the roster to compete against Jones.

"I really don't worry about anything extraneous," said Jones, who got through a difficult first day last Friday and has kicked well since.

"Every year you're going to have competition, and I think that's good. I always strive for perfection, and the last few days have really been good. I just have to carry it over and do it next camp and training camp."

Note

• Several players who are recovering from offseason surgeries were able to run and stretch in practice yesterday, including DE Bryce Fisher, CB Marcus Trufant, FS Marquand Manuel and OG Steve Hutchinson. New LB Jamie Sharper was given the day off to rest.

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