Alexander practices; so, now what?

KIRKLAND -- Everyone knew this day was coming. Shaun Alexander would return to practice, and take the next step toward getting back into the Seahawks lineup.

It finally happened Wednesday.

Now, the question is: What will the Seahawks do with their leading rusher?

With Alexander sidelined since the Week 9 loss in Cleveland with a sprained left knee, the team has gone on a three-game winning streak and the offense has reverted to coach Mike Holmgren's pass-first-and-foremost roots.

Alexander's knee might be better, but he still would have to play with a cast on his left wrist -- which he did for seven weeks before spraining the knee, causing obvious problems catching the ball (a team-high six dropped passes).

Holmgren is taking a wait-and-see approach. For the past few weeks, he has said Alexander would not play until he could practice for the entire week. Now that he has that first practice behind him this week, it would seem that being able to go Thursday and Friday would be all that stands between Alexander and playing in Sunday's game against the Eagles in Philadelphia.

But when asked the obvious Wednesday, Holmgren offered: "That's a good one. We'll wait and see. Anything I say probably wouldn't happen, so we'll just let it happen and we'll see how that goes."

Alexander looked fast and explosive Wednesday, when his teammates teased him about having "fresh legs" after his prolonged inactivity.

"He was out there running fast, playing fast," quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. "That's obviously something that's welcomed by everybody on the team. It's good to have him back and healthy.

"Hopefully he can step right in and be the same Shaun that we've always known."

Alexander did step right in Wednesday, taking more reps than anticipated since Maurice Morris was limited because of a sore ankle.

The next step is seeing how the knee feels Thursday, following his most extensive action in almost a month.

"I won't be surprised if I'm a little sore, but it feels really good right now," Alexander said. "I kept on asking if I looked normal, if I looked OK. And everybody said I looked fresh. That's a good thing."

But which Alexander would the Seahawks get? The Alexander "we've always known," as Hasselbeck put it? Or the Alexander who struggled and looked tentative while adjusting to playing with the cast on his wrist?

Compounding the decision-making process is how well Morris has played in his absence. The Seahawks continue to average fewer than 100 rushing yards (98.6 with Morris; 95.1 with Alexander). But Morris has done a good job in pass protection, even if he has caught only five passes in his three starts.

Even if Alexander returns against the Eagles, Morris will continue to play. Holmgren discussed the situation with Alexander on Tuesday and it was "all good," Holmgren said.

"Mo and I, we have a great relationship, just like when I was the backup for Ricky (Watters)," Alexander said. "We let the coaches decide what's going to happen and we just play.

"Mo did a lot of great things while I was gone, and he's going to continue doing them."

The difference between the two is obvious. Morris is smaller, faster and hits the assigned holes quicker. With his glide-and-slide style, Alexander provides more creativity.

"Sometimes good, sometimes bad," running backs coach Stump Mitchell said. "You have to take the bitter with the sweet."

For Alexander, just getting back out on the practice field was sweet enough.

"Today was exciting," he said. "I'm blessed. I could have Christmas a little bit earlier than everybody else, because I got to do something I love to do -- which is play football."

SEAHAWKS AT EAGLES

WHEN/WHERE: Sunday, 10 a.m., Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia

TV/RADIO: KCPQ/13; KIRO-AM/710

FOCUS ON: CORTEZ KENNEDY

Cortez Kennedy has not played for the Seahawks since the dreadful final game of a disappointing 2000 season. The Seahawks lost what proved to be his last game -- 42-23 to the Buffalo Bills -- and finished 6-10.

But the rotund defensive tackle was back in the news Wednesday, for a much better reason: Kennedy is one of 26 semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2008.

The 26-man field of modern-era semifinalists was chosen from a group of 124 nominees by the Hall of Fame's Board of Selectors. The field will now be trimmed to 15 finalists and the 2008 inductees will be determined Feb. 2 -- the day before Super Bowl XLII in Arizona.

This is the first time Kennedy has been a semifinalist.

Kennedy was voted NFL defensive player of the year in 1992, despite playing on a 2-14 team. He also was selected to a club-record eight Pro Bowls and named to the NFL all-decade team for the 1990s.