Seahawks WR Jackson now iffy for Sunday

KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) _ Darrell Jackson's on-and-off status now seems closer to ``off.'' <br/><br/>The Seahawks' leading receiver unexpectedly missed practice again Friday, just before the

Saturday, January 13th 2007, 7:05 am

By: News On 6

KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) _ Darrell Jackson's on-and-off status now seems closer to ``off.''

The Seahawks' leading receiver unexpectedly missed practice again Friday, just before the team boarded an afternoon flight to Chicago for Sunday's NFC divisional playoff game against the Bears. Coach Mike Holmgren said Jackson's availability will be a game-time decision.

Holmgren had said at the beginning of the week that he expected Jackson, listed as questionable with a turf toe injury on his left foot, would practice by Friday and that he was ``likely'' to play Sunday.

Now, Holmgren's not so sure about him _ or D.J. Hackett. The emerging fourth receiver sprained his ankle during last week's win over Dallas and is listed as doubtful against the Bears (13-3).

``Those will be Sunday decisions,'' Holmgren said. ``They're going to have to show me something (during pregame drills) that tells me they can play.''

It's yet another setback in season full of injuries for the defending NFC champions.

Last Saturday was the first time this season Seattle (10-7) had all of its receivers available for a game. The Seahawks started their ninth different combination of offensive linemen against the Cowboys. They have also played without quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, last season's league MVP Shaun Alexander and tight end Jerramy Stevens for at least a month each.

``Kind of the way it's gone,'' Holmgren said of Jackson not practicing. ``But I'm hopeful we'll have one or both (Jackson and Hackett) Sunday.''

Jackson, who was leading the NFL in touchdown receptions before his injury caused him to miss the final three games of the regular season, also missed practice Wednesday and Thursday. He missed all practices last week before he ran 21 plays against Dallas.

Jackson pulled himself from that game one play into the third quarter because he said the pain had become unbearable. He had two passes come his way but no catches.

By midweek Jackson was optimistic he would play in Chicago, where Seattle will be seeking its first road playoff win since 1983.

``I'm going to play as much as I can, suck the pain up as much as I can,'' Jackson said. ``Try to give our team another weapon out there.''

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NOTES:

WEATHER A NON-FACTOR?: About two dozen chilled fans cheered the Seahawks outside their headquarters as they boarded buses following the light practice. Defensive end Grant Wistrom blew fans a kiss before heading to the airport for an earlier-than-usual trip.

The Seahawks normally would fly on Saturday for a Sunday game in the Central time zone, but Holmgren said the league asked Seattle to travel a day earlier.

``The league encouraged us, because it's a playoff situation and the weather can be a lot of snow _ like we have here in Seattle,'' Holmgren said, chuckling.

This week, the normally temperate Puget Sound region got its second coating of ice and snow in a month, again stranding motorists unfamiliar with winter driving. And with temperatures barely reaching 30 degrees this week in the Seattle area, the Seahawks are ready for Chicago's expected weather on Sunday: 32 degrees with a 40 percent chance of light snow or freezing rain.

``I don't think weather will be a factor,'' said Holmgren.

He is 14-3 as a head coach against the Bears _ 12-2 as the Green Bay Packers' coach from 1992-98.

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TRUFANT SHOWS: Starting cornerback Marcus Trufant, out with a right high ankle sprain since Dec. 24, showed up at practice and did some moving around. Seattle's best cover man is listed as doubtful for Sunday, but Holmgren reiterated that Trufant will not play.

Holmgren said the team's thought is that if ``we are fortunate enough to get to the conference championship game,'' Trufant might be able to play next week.

For now, the Seahawks activated rookie Gerard Ross from the practice squad for Sunday. Ross, an undrafted free agent, will likely play on special teams and perhaps as an extra defensive back in passing situations. The secondary will again be missing three of its top cornerbacks and will have usual safety Jordan Babineaux starting on the outside.

The Seahawks cut Ross, a former Florida State cornerback, twice earlier this season before signing him back to the practice squad each time.

Asked if Ross was ready to contribute, Holmgren smiled and said, ``Well, we'll see.''