Seahawks' road to division title looking fairly easy

The Seahawks return from their bye today with a chance to essentially wrap up the NFC West championship over the next three weeks.

Already 2-0 in the division with wins against the Arizona Cardinals at home and the Rams in St. Louis, the Seahawks open the second half of their season with games in Arizona, against the Rams at Qwest Field and against the 49ers in San Francisco. That trio has a combined record of 8-14, and victories in those games would make the Seahawks 5-0 in the NFC West and 8-2 overall — a virtual lock for the division title and the playoffs.

The rest of the schedule also seems fairly soft, with just three of Seattle's nine opponents currently owning winning records.

The schedule also has a certain rhythm — with every other game on the road, beginning at Arizona. The Seahawks will have home-field advantage over St. Louis, the New York Giants and the currently undefeated Indianapolis Colts, along with the 49ers. Excluding the Eagles, whom the Seahawks play in Philadelphia on Monday, Dec. 5, Seattle's road foes are 7-22.

The five other times the Seahawks started the season 5-2, they finished with at least nine wins. So with their good start and a somewhat easy ride to the end of the season, they should be able to reach 10 wins for the fourth time in franchise history.

Here's a look at the season's back nine:

At Arizona (2-5)

1:05 p.m., Sunday

The Seahawks beat the Cardinals 37-12 in Seattle last month and have won five of the past six against Arizona. But the Cardinals confounded Seattle QB Matt Hasselbeck down there last season, getting four interceptions in a 25-17 victory.

QB Kurt Warner was injured against the Seahawks last month, and Josh McCown has since led Arizona to wins over the 49ers and Tennessee Titans. One problem for the Seahawks in this game is the fact that they are 0-6 after bye weeks under coach Mike Holmgren.

St. Louis (4-4)

1:15 p.m., Nov. 13

The Seahawks exorcised one demon, beating the Rams in St. Louis earlier this month. They'll have another one to face in this game. Memories of blowing a 17-point, fourth-quarter lead last season will predominate the buildup to the second game against their key division rival.

The Seahawks' victory in St. Louis on Oct. 9 was Mike Martz's final game as coach of the Rams this season (and perhaps beyond). He has since taken a season-long leave of absence to recover from a heart infection.

The Rams, who were without starting quarterback Marc Bulger and starting receivers Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce on Sunday, figure to have all of them back for this game.

At San Francisco (2-5)

1:05 p.m., Nov. 20

The Seahawks own the 49ers these days, and this game should be no different. Last season, Seattle won 34-0 at home and 42-27 in San Francisco.

This season, the 49ers have struggled on both sides of the ball under first-year coach Mike Nolan. No. 1 pick Alex Smith was inserted as the starting quarterback in Week 5 against the Colts. The 49ers lost that one, 28-3. Then they lost 52-17 to Washington, but won 15-10 over Tampa Bay on Sunday with Ken Dorsey getting the start in place of the injured Smith.

With games coming up against the Giants and Chicago Bears, the 49ers could well be 2-7 when the Seahawks arrive.

N.Y. Giants (5-2)

1:15 p.m., Nov. 21

The Seahawks already have played two tough games against the NFC East, the league's best division through seven weeks.

The Giants, who own the top-scoring offense in the NFL, figure to provide just as tough a challenge as the Seahawks faced in an overtime loss to Washington on Oct. 2 and a last-play victory over Dallas last Sunday.

The Giants' only losses have come in Denver and against Philadelphia. This will be one of the Seattle defense's biggest tests.

At Philadelphia (4-3)

6 p.m., Dec. 5

This Monday-night event could be one of the biggest games in the NFL this season — and there already have been quite a few.

This will be Holmgren's third game against the team coached by his former Packers assistant, Andy Reid. The Seahawks lost in 2002 and 2003.

This season, the Eagles have lost in Atlanta, Dallas and Denver, while pulling out comeback wins in Kansas City and against the San Diego Chargers.

This game could be key in determining home-field advantage in the NFC playoffs.

At Tennessee (2-6)

10 a.m., Dec. 18

The league's youngest team is playing like it, and QB Steve McNair has suffered through the usual maladies — he missed the Titans' loss in Arizona last weekend. The Titans' only two wins came against Baltimore (2-4) and Houston (1-6).

Indianapolis (7-0)

1:15 p.m., Dec. 24

The Colts finally have a defense to go with their offense. In fact, Dwight Freeney & Co. have overshadowed Peyton Manning's men through the first seven games.

Entering Sunday, the Colts were the sixth-ranked defense in the league and were allowing the fewest points (11 per game). That trumps the No. 8 ranking of the offense, which is third in scoring at 27 points per game.

Good thing for the Seahawks this game will be at home.

At Green Bay (1-6)

1:15 p.m., Jan. 1

The Packers are nothing like the team that knocked the Seahawks out of the playoffs two seasons ago.

QB Brett Favre is without his top two running backs (Ahman Green and Najeh Davenport) and two of his top three receivers (Javon Walker and Robert Ferguson).

The Packers' only win was a doozy, 52-3 over the New Orleans Saints in Week 5. But they could have used some of those points in their losses, four of which have been by three points or less.

The Packers' biggest loss might be the absence of the Lambeau Field mystique; they are 1-2 at home this season.

Chris Cluff: 206-464-8787 or ccluff@seattletimes.com