After two days of sitting out and watching, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck took some snaps with the first unit during a 45-minute walk through this morning, and then stayed after to work on drops and throw some routes under the watchful eye of head coach Pete Carroll.

And the verdict?

“Charlie’s going,” Carroll said. “We’ve been committed to that because that’s what we can count on and that’s what we know. Charlie had a real solid week. He did everything we needed him to do, so he’s ready for the game.”

However, Hasselbeck, who’s been out most of the week with a hip injury, will be listed as questionable for Sunday’s contest against the Rams.

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Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Colin Cole said despite the ascension of rookie quarterback Sam Bradford as one of the better signal callers in the league in his first season, The St. Louis Rams’ offense still runs through Steven Jackson.

Cole:

“It always starts with Steven Jackson. They’re not going to put the whole offense on Bradford’s shoulders and expect him to win the game for them. It’s not going to happen.

“They’ve got one of the top-five running backs in the game in their backfield, and he makes that team better. And he’s going to be the No. 1 threat that we have to take away from them as best as we can.”

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Video: Preview of the Seahawks vs. Rams game

For the second straight day reserve quarterback Charlie Whitehurst tool all the reps with the first unit, and starter Matt Hasselbeck watched from the sideline during this afternoon’s practice.

Whitehurst, who would make his second career start if goes on Sunday, said the work with the first unit has helped, and he’s prepared to face St. Louis.

“They really get after it,” Whitehurst said. “They play hard and put pressure on you as an offense. So we’re going to have to be on top of it. And we’ll try to run it, try to throw it and score points.”

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Dave Boling of The News Tribune wonders if the Seattle Seahawks have a good option at quarterback on Sunday between an inexperienced Charlie Whitehurst or a beat up Matt Hasselbeck.

Boling:

“In 15 games, those two have combined for 13 touchdown passes in 508 attempts (their opponents have 31 TD passes). They have a combined 71.2 passer rating (their opponents’ collective 92.1 rating is higher than the performances that Peyton Manning and Matt Ryan needed to get Pro Bowl berths).

“Whitehurst directed the No. 1 unit in practice Wednesday, but Hasselbeck was on the hoof, in sweats, and throwing the ball around a little bit.

“Carroll keeps stressing that Whitehurst is the starter this week but continues to leave the door ajar for Hasselbeck, making it sound as if Carroll will have to drive a stake through Hasselbeck’s heart to keep him on the sideline.”

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Seattle Seahawks free safety Earl Thomas was selected as a Pro Bowl alternate today. He obviously was hoping for some better news, but still is happy with the accomplishment.

“I feel pretty good about it,” Thomas said. “I think there’s a lot of politics that go into it. But I’m happy to be in this situation. Right now I’m just worried about the game Sunday, and hopefully we can get a win and make the playoffs.”

Thomas also talked about his performance during the year. The verdict? A work in progress.

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Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said the plan remains for Charlie Whitehurst to start on Sunday. He said that Matt Hasselbeck will not practice today and Thursday, but that he did get some pool work in today, and holds out hope that he can play on Sunday.

“He thinks he’s going to make it,” Carroll said about the possibility of Hasselbeck playing on Sunday. “It’s going to be against the odds if he can do that. But he’s willing to go for it, and we’ll see what that means later this week.”

Carroll said that Whitehurst does not have any limitations in terms of knowing the playbook, but the team will try and create a game plan that fits what he does well.

“He’s prepared as well as he could have to this point,” Carroll said about Whitehurst. “I think he was surprised coming into the game last week. It happened so fast that we didn’t respond the way we’d like to. I know that he’s anxious to get back out there and go. It took him awhile to get warmed up and get going last week, and it was too late for us.”

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We talked to St. Louis Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo this morning. And the second-year head coach is not into introspection in how his team has arrived from 1-15 a year ago to possibly finishing 8-8 and in the playoffs for the first time since 2004 if they win at Seattle on Sunday.

He’s more focused on preparing for Seattle.

“I learned in this business that win or lose on Sunday, certainly from the players’ perspective and the coaches, one Monday afternoon rolls around the challenge of the job going forward is the same,” he said. “Nobody waits for you to celebrate a win. Nobody waits for you if you’re pouting about a loss. So I really haven’t (thought about his team’s turnaround). There will be time for that. Hopefully it’s down the road here. Right now, I don’t mean to sound redundant, but it is all focused on this one game.”

Listen to a snippet of our conversation with Spagnuolo here.

MP3:

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