Hasselbeck starts road to recovery

Throughout the offseason, Seahawks brass have gone out of their way to praise Matt Hasselbeck, saying he's "still in his prime" and remains "one of the best quarterbacks of the game."

I was skeptical of all the man love because Hasselbeck, 33, missed nine games with a bulging disc in his back last year.  It looked like a chronic problem that wasn't going anyway.  But the Seahawks proved their faith when they passed on Mark Sanchez in the draft, and now it's up to Hasselbeck to make them look good.  The early signs are encouraging.

The estimable Mike Sando reports that Hasselbeck has looked outstanding at recent Seahawks practices, with, "absolutely no indication he's had back problems."  (He also has a healthy twitter page.)  Taking a hit will be the real test, but it's still encouraging news for a player that has been hurt since last August.

If Hasselbeck is healthy and can transition well to a new offense, Seattle remains the biggest challenger to Arizona in the NFC West.  The Mike Singletary bandwagon doesn't need any more passengers.