Seahawks have receiver questions heading into camp

Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren has said this will be his last year on the sideline, and you know he wants to go out a winner in Seattle.

However, one big question dogging the team this offseason is at wideout. The team’s top three primary receivers from last season all could conceivably not be playing for the Seahawks on opening day:

*-For sure D.J. Hackett won’t be playing for Seattle on Week 1: He signed as a free agent with Carolina.

*-Veteran Bobby Engram is unhappy with his contract and says a training camp holdout is certainly a possibility. He had 94 catches for 1,147 yards and six TDs last year and wants a deal more indicative of those numbers.

Despite Engram’s threats, Holmgren expects him to be at camp in July: “Right now, I’m saying the glass is half full.”
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*-Then there is Deion Branch. He suffered a torn ACL in his left knee late last season, and no one is sure when he will play. His injury traditionally includes a nine-month rehab. That could mean Branch won’t be available until midseason, but the coaches continue to talk as if Branch will be available for the regular-season opener.

“Anybody that says they know exactly when he’s going to be ready, it’s a good guess but it’s a guess,” Holmgren said. “So right now, I’m not thinking much about him. …

“I’ve got to get my mind-set going on those other guys. When Deion is ready, he’ll play and he’ll be fine.”

Still, many observers around the team expect Branch to start the season on the PUP list (physically unable to perform), meaning he’d be out through Week 6.

“It’s a tough one, because we don’t know,” Holmgren said.

That means much of the receiving load likely will fall on Nate Burleson and young, unproven players such as late-round draft choices Ben Obomanu (2006) and Courtney Taylor and Jordan Kent (2007).

Thus you may see more of a of a ground-oriented, lower-scoring team in Seattle, at least to start the season. Running backs Julius Jones and Maurice Morris could be the top beneficiaries.