Tarvaris Jackson limited in practice

By Liz Mathews

Seahawks backup quarterback Charlie Whitehurst said once again that he is ready to start this Sunday if Tarvaris Jackson is unable to go. Whitehurst played for Jackson last week when the starter was a late scratch in Cleveland, still sidelined by the pectoral injury that kept him out of two weeks of practice.

“Yeah, there wasn’t a lot of good, but you try to take it and learn from it,” Whitehurst said on Thursday before practice. “Once you do that you move on and try to get better from there. So there were some things that I think we can work on as a team, that I can work on as a quarterback and you try to fix those things and move on to next week.”

Whitehurst said that despite the obvious home field advantage of playing at CenturyLink Field, the Seahawks must gear up to face one of the most difficult defenses in the league.

“Obviously they’ve been playing very well,” Whitehurst said. “Statistically they’re the number one defense in the Leagle right now. They’re tough. They’re good at just about every position. They’re good up front. They have guys that can cover, for sure.

“So our work is going to be cut out for us, but that’s what it’s like in this league and we’ll have to go out there and fight as hard as we can and score more points than they do.”

Injuries have taken their toll on the Seahawks — most recently, on the offensive side of the ball. With four starters limited in practice this week, getting healthy may be the key to Sunday’s game.

“You like to be as healthy as you can be going into every week,” Whitehurst said. “I think that there’s a chance that we’ll be healthier this week, so I’m not sure if that’ll help or not. We’ll see.”

Tight end Zach Miller, running back Marshawn Lynch and center Max Unger all returned to full practice on Thursday.

Thursday practice report

DID NOT PARTICIPATE:

S Jeron Johnson (ankle)
S Atari Bigby (hamstring)

LIMITED PARTICIPATION:

QB Tarvaris Jackson (pectoral)

FULL PRACTICE:

RB Marshawn Lynch (back)
TE Zach Miller (head/neck)
C Max Unger (foot)
S Kam Chancellor (knee)

Cornerback Brandon Browner returned to practice on Thursday after missing Wednesday with a non-injury. Cornerback Walter Thurmond, recently placed on the injured reserve, underwent successful ankle surgery on Thursday at the Seattle Surgery Center. The rehabilitation process is expected to take four to six months.