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Matt Hasselbeck

But, to borrow a line from Mora, the Seahawks’ 1-3 record at the quarter pole of his first season as head coach is what it is.

Injuries certainly have played a major role in the disappointing start, as 10 starters have missed a combined 23 games – and counting, because left guard Rob Sims will not play in Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Qwest Field and defensive end Patrick Kerney is doubtful.

The list of missing starters has included the quarterback (Hasselbeck) and two of the three linebackers (Leroy Hill and Lofa Tatupu), and Sunday will grow to three-fifths of the offensive line (tackles Walter Jones and Sean Locklear and Sims).

Mora, however, refuses to use the mounting losses of key players as an excuse for the consecutive losses to the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers (3-1), Chicago Bears (3-1) and unbeaten Indianapolis Colts (4-0).

“We don’t really talk about the injuries,” Mora said. “In front of the team, it’s not a point of emphasis. Part of the reason for that is, like I said a couple weeks ago, these guys are all professional football players. They’re all paid to perform at a certain level. And I don’t want to disrespect any of them by saying, ‘OK, now we have to overcome this injury or that injury.’

“I want to try to exude some confidence in them, which I do have in them.”

For every injured starter, a backup has had to step in. Seneca Wallace for Hasselbeck. Waiver-wire pickup Brandon Frye at left tackle for Jones and Locklear. Will Herring for Hill and, for almost two games, David Hawthorne for Tatupu. Kelly Jennings at left cornerback for Trufant and Josh Wilson. Steve Vallos at center for Chris Spencer, and Mansfield Wrotto for Sims. Craig Terrill at defensive tackle for Brandon Mebane. Owen Schmitt at fullback for Justin Griffith.

All this shuffling has created a patchwork situation where the smallest mistake can led to a big play by the opposition.

Where does it hurt?
In their first four games, the Seahawks already have had 10 starters miss a combined 23 games:
Games	Player
4	OT Walter Jones
4	CB Marcus Trufant
3	LB Leroy Hill
2	FB Justin Griffith
2	QB Matt Hasselbeck
2	OT Sean Locklear
2	C Chris Spencer
2	CB Josh Wilson
1	DT Brandon Mebane
1	MLB Lofa Tatupu

“One minute we will, one quarter we will, one half we will,” strong safety Deon Grant said. “But as for four quarters, we haven’t been playing our game. We’ve been making the smallest mistakes and teams have been capitalizing on them.”

The rallying cry of getting healthy has been amended to include also getting to the bye week at 3-3 as the team prepares for back-to-back home games against the Jaguars (2-2) and Arizona Cardinals (1-2).

“We’re not where we want to be. We didn’t expect to be here,” Mora said. “We have to find a way to look forward and get better from this point on.”

With that said, here’s a look back to some of the better efforts from the first quarter of the season:

Best offensive player: Julius Jones. He’s not only the leading rusher, Jones has the team’s longest run (62 yards) and reception (39) – both for scores, as he also has three of the Seahawks’ eight touchdowns. His efforts also have mirrored the inconsistency of the offense, as Jones rushed for 117 and 98 yards in Weeks 1 and 3 and was held to 11 and 25 in Weeks 2 and 4.

Best defensive player: Lawrence Jackson. Last year’s first-round draft choice has a team-leading three sacks in his role as a rotating end. Monday, Mora referred to Jackson as, “One of the hidden jewels, I guess you could say, in the 1-3 start.”

Best special teams player: Jon Ryan. The Canadian punter is the only player on the team to rank among the Top 5 in the league in any category – third in average (51.8) and fourth in net average (42.7). As Mora said Monday, “I think our punter is outstanding.”

Best rookie: A tie between right guard Max Unger and outside linebacker Aaron Curry. While Curry, the first-round draft choice, has made the flashier plays; Unger, the second-round pick, has been steadier. Each has had his moments early on this season.

Best stat line by a fill-in defensive player: 15-1-16-1. It belonged to Hawthorne in his start for Tatupu against the Bears. The second-year middle linebacker, who made the team last year as a rookie free agent, had 15 tackles and one assist for the second-highest total in franchise history (16) for the regular-season game. Oh, and he also intercepted a pass.

Best stat line by a fill-in offensive player: 45-33-257-1-0-99.4. Those were Wallace’s numbers against the Colts on Sunday. The 33 completions tied for the second-most in club history (with Dave Krieg, and three shy of Hasselbeck’s total from an overtime win against the Chargers in 2002). The passing yardage was four short of his career-best total against the Bears the week before and his completion percentage (.734) was just off his career-best against the Falcons in 2007 (.773).

Comeback player: To be determined. Which still-sidelined player comes back first and helps the team most? Hasselbeck? Jones? Locklear? Hill? Trufant?

A five-way tie would go a long way toward helping Mora and everyone else forget the 1-3 start to the 2009 season.