Better by the day.
That’s how coach Jim Mora summed up
Hasselbeck is listed as probable for Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Qwest Field and it appears only a major setback will prevent him from playing.
“Matt got better every day,” Mora said today. “He looked more comfortable every day. So that’s a good sign.”
Yes it is, especially for an injury-ravaged team that needs to beat the Jaguars on Sunday and then the defending NFC champion Arizona Cardinals next week to reach its bye week at 3-3.
Hasselbeck is only one player, and one with a tender rib at that. But his presence in the lineup – rather than on the sideline – is the kind of boost this team needs after losing its past three games.
It was just Monday that Mora found Hasselbeck in “excruciating pain” in the locker room after a workout. But Hasselbeck made progress each day this week.
“I’m not surprised,” Mora said. “Matt is a very tough man, physically and mentally. So I’m not surprised that he was able to have a good week of practice and get stronger every day.
“Every day, he looked just more comfortable, more confident.”
Mora then contorted his upper body as he added, “Less doing this kind of stuff. And he seemed to be more focused every day on the plays he was running, rather than how he was feeling.”
The most telling aspect of Hasselbeck’s progression was that if you didn’t know he had a sore rib you wouldn’t have been able to tell by the way he was practicing today.
Presented with that idea, Mora offered, “Not as of today. Maybe Wednesday. But not today. I thought today he looked just normal.”
The other players also noticed.
“Matt looked good. Every day I thought he got better,” said
“But everybody looks good when you know nobody is going to hit you. So hopefully it stays that way Sunday.”
The unit that remains most mangled by injuries is the offensive line – Hasselbeck’s personal protectors. Tackles
So the line will include – from left tackle to right –
“You can’t anticipate this kind of damage being done to your offensive line,” Mora said. “You just can’t, regardless of what’s happened in the past.
“Who would have ever thought that five games into the season three of our starting linemen would be out? I would never have thought that. I’ve never experienced it before.”
But he quickly added that the situation on the line would not impact his decision on whether Hasselbeck plays.
“It’s always a concern,” Mora said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s Matt or any other quarterback, their job is to protect him and our goal is to protect him. So I wouldn’t want to put any more emphasis on it this week because I think that’s a little bit of an insult to the other guys.”
Mora also said the decision with Hasselbeck won’t be determined by opponent, and how good their pass rush might be. The Jaguars have a league-low three sacks.
“It’s not about who we’re playing,” he said. “It’s about if he’s healthy or not. If he’s ready to go on Sunday – if he’s looks me in the eye and says, ‘I’m going’ – then he’s going. It wouldn’t matter if we’re playing any team in the league.”
