OFFICIAL GDT - COWBOYS vs SEAHAWKS!!!

[Underdog]

Seahawks vs. Cowboys
Must Push This Winning Streak To Three Straight

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GAME SET WHAT: Seattle Seahawks (2-9) vs. Dallas Cowboys (7-4)
WHEN: Thursday, 3:15 p.m. (CST)
WHERE: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
TELEVISION: Fox (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Pam Oliver)

BIG ISSUE: This is a short week for the Cowboys, but playing on Thanksgiving is something the club has been used to for quite some time. When the Seattle Seahawks roll into town on Thursday, the Cowboys will have two things in mind: Win the game and get out as healthy as they entered the game. A win would give them an 8-4 record before a tough final four-game stretch against Pittsburgh (8-3), the New York Giants (10-1), Baltimore (7-4), and Philadelphia (5-5-1). After the game, the Cowboys will have 10 days before playing the Steelers at Heinz Field, but they know a win must come first.

This isn't how Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren envisioned his final season in Seattle going. The Seahawks are in third in the NFC West, only ahead of St. Louis, also at 2-9 but who lost to Seattle earlier in the season. A large factor in the Seahawks' demise - they've made the playoffs for the last five seasons - has been an unfortunate string of injuries to key offensive personnel, including quarterback Matt Hasselbeck and almost every single one of their wide receivers at some point in time. Luckily, despite Holmgren's lame duck status, the Seahawks don't have to start an early search for his replacement; assistant coach Jim Mora Jr. has already been tabbed as his successor, although his name seems to be popping up for the vacant University of Washington job, too. But they would like to give Mora something to work with next year, and that means getting on track over the last five games of the season.

NUMBERS, PLEASE: Pop quiz: based on yards-per-carry average, who is the Cowboys most efficient running back? If you guessed rookie Tashard Choice, you're right. Choice holds a 4.7 average per carry (compared to Barber's 3.9 average), gaining 90 yards but on only 19 carries. With a short week, the Cowboys may give Choice more work in order to preserve Barber, and judging by his average, there won't be much of a drop off in production. The Seahawks may be 2-9, but they're better than their record suggests. Four of their nine losses have been by less than one score - they lost by three to San Francisco, by two to Miami, by six to Arizona and by three last week to Washington. If the Seahawks had pulled those games out, they'd be sitting at 6-5 and atop the NFC West since Arizona would then have six wins instead of seven and Seattle would hold the head-to-head tiebreaker.

ONE-ON-ONE: The Seahawks passing game hasn't been the most productive compared to recent years, but rookie tight end John Carlson, out of Notre Dame, has been as consistent as it's been this season in Seattle, leading the team in catches (32), receiving yards (351) and touchdowns (3). With Seattle likely to target Carlson often, the Cowboys will probably opt to cover him with a safety rather than a linebacker, and that will most likely be strong safety Keith Davis in their standard defense. Davis is more of a hard-hitting run stopper than a coverage safety, although he did show off his clutch man-coverage skills earlier this year against the Bengals when he broke up a fade pass in the end zone to Bengals tight end Ben Utecht that prevented a two-point conversion. Courtney Brown also will draw some tight-end coverage on the team's sub-packages since safety Pat Watkins is once again bothered by that bulging disk in his neck.

For some reason, despite every single one of the Cowboys' opponents since Green Bay in Week 3 proving the method, last week the 49ers decided not to jam Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens at the line of scrimmage with safety help over the top. Instead, they played off on Owens, and he torched them for 213 yards and a touchdown. Don't expect the Seahawks to make the same mistake. Seahawks cornerback Marcus Trufant, a Pro Bowler last season, will throw every inch of his 5-11, 197 pound frame into Owens within the allowed five yards past the line of scrimmage, knowing that since he has help over the top he won't need to worry about getting beat deep. Whether Owens can beat that jam, or whether other Cowboys receiving threats - wide receiver Roy Williams and tight end Jason Witten - can step up and draw coverage away from Owens, remains to be seen.

SUPPORTING ROLE: Cowboys starting left guard Kyle Kosier just can't seem to stay healthy. He returned from a hairline fracture in his foot in the Week 3 win over the Packers, but then was shelved again after re-injuring his foot. He returned to the starting lineup after the bye against the Redskins, and this time made it two games before leaving during the second half in Sunday's game with San Francisco, again with a foot injury. Each time the Cowboys turned to Cory Procter to fill the void, but on Thursday that may change. The Cowboys finally seem ready to give guard Montrae Holland, acquired during the preseason from Denver, a chance in the starting lineup. Holland is built more like the prototypical Cowboys lineman at 6-2, 322 pounds, and has more starting experience than Procter, having started 46 games during his five previous NFL seasons. Holland did receive almost a series a game during the period when Kosier was out, but now that he's more comfortable with the playbook, the Cowboys will see if he can provide more pop than Procter did.

The Seahawks may be 2-9, but this is the most important game of the season for running back Julius Jones. Jones, who signed with Seattle in the off-season, will make his return to Texas Stadium after being drafted and spending the first four seasons of his career with the Cowboys. This time, though, the 2004 second-round pick will be in a different uniform and in a different locker room. Jones, who never really received an offer from the Cowboys to remain in Dallas and continue sharing carries with Marion Barber, went to the Seahawks thinking he'd be the guy, but this past game Holmgren decided to start Maurice Morris, who ran for 103 yards Sunday against the Redskins. However, Holmgren has said Jones will start against the Cowboys, likely hoping that the running back will have a little extra motivation to play well against his old team.

HEADSET GAMES: This game has the potential to be a breakout performance for some of the Cowboys' recently quiet offensive players. Last week against the 49ers, Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo didn't have to look anywhere else but at Owens, but if the Seahawks try jamming Owens at the line of scrimmage, other opportunities are likely to open up for Witten and Williams. Neither has been overly productive in the past few games, Witten likely because of his rib injury and Williams due to having to deal with his third Cowboys quarterback since he arrived. And with Romo's pinky finger healing more every week, the amount of wobbly passes coming out of his hands will decrease greatly, enhancing the productivity of the Cowboys' offense.

The Seahawks know the key to winning this game is not living and dying by the run, but by protecting Hasselbeck, who until two weeks ago against Arizona had missed five consecutive games with a back injury. Hasselbeck is the only proven offensive weapon the Seahawks have, so in order to stay in the game he needs to be kept upright. Seattle is middle-of-the-pack when it comes to pass protection, having given up 24 sacks so far this season, but the Cowboys excel at rushing the passer, and if Hasselbeck doesn't have any time to find an open receiver, he'll either wind up on his back a lot, make poor throwing choices or end up going three-and-out. The Cowboys would be happy with any of those scenarios.

HEALTH WATCH:

Cowboys
The Cowboys already know they will be without three players for sure, listing starting left guard Kyle Kosier (foot, again), wide receiver Miles Austin (knee) and cornerback Mike Jenkins (hamstring) out for this game - and Kosier likely is done for the season with foot surgery a very real possibility. Safety Pat Watkins suffered another stinger late in the Washington game, and he is being listed as questionable for Thursday's contest, although Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips didn't seem too encouraged about his availability. That is why the Cowboys signed first-year free agent Tra Battle off the San Diego practice squad on Wednesday, and Phillips said he could participate on special teams if Watkins doesn't play. The Cowboys made room for Battle by finally placing rookie Felix Jones (toe surgery) on injured reserve. The Cowboys listed two other players who have been practicing on a limited basis this short week as questionable, tight end Martellus Bennett (ankle) and linebacker/special-teamer Justin Rogers (back). Being listed as probable are cornerback Terence Newman (groin), quarterback Tony Romo (finger), wide receiver Isaiah Stanback (shoulder) and tight end Jason Witten (ribs).

Seahawks
The Seahawks know for sure they will be without their starting left guard too, Mike Wahle already ruled out with a shoulder injury. On top of that, starting center Chris Spencer is no better than questionable with a back injury and he failed to participate in the team's two practices this short week. Also questionable is defensive tackle Red Bryant (ankle). Being listed as doubtful is backup safety C.J. Wallace (hamstring), who failed to practice these past two days. Probable are quarterback Matt Hasselback (back) and wide receiver Koren Robinson (knee).