PATRIOTS GAME DAY PREVIEW

JOHN TOMASE SEATTLE -- They were two of the most visionary assistants in Football, on opposite sides of the ball in the 1980s and early '90s. They went on to success as head coaches, each winning Super Bowls and making multiple playoff appearances. In today's NFL, they represent offensive and defensive greatness, respectively. There's one big difference between Mike Holmgren and Bill Belichick, though -- the 2008 fates of their respective teams. Belichick's Patriots, even without Tom Brady, are in the playoff hunt and still have a shot at winning their sixth straight AFC East title. Holmgren's Seahawks are cooked. In what long ago was announced as his final season, the Seahawks have been devastated by injuries and sit at 2-10. Just three seasons removed from their lone Super Bowl appearance, their playoff hopes vanished in the season's first month. Things got so bad, Holmgren told his team flat-out before a Thanksgiving matchup with the Cowboys that they were badly outgunned talent-wise and should just hold on as best they could. ``The guys that have been left standing have been going like crazy,'' Holmgren said last week. ``We just haven't been quite good enough.'' With those struggles as a backdrop, when Holmgren and Belichick meet today, the game will be as much about what used to be as what is now. ``I have a great deal of respect for Mike,'' Belichick said. ``We go way back to the Giants-San Francisco days and in Green Bay and Seattle. He has had a tremendous career. He has been a great coach, as an offensive coach and head coach. He has had a lot of success in the different programs that he has been involved with.'' While Belichick was designing defenses that would lead the New York Giants to a pair of Super Bowl titles, Holmgren was helping mastermind some of the greatest offenses in history with Bill Walsh's 49ers and their West Coast system. The two later met in Super Bowl XXXI, with Holmgren's Packers beating Bill Parcells' Pats for whom Belichick served as assistant head coach. Holmgren's status as a quarterback guru is legendary, from his Brigham Young University days with Robbie Bosco and Steve Young to his work with Joe Montana, Young, Brett Favre and Matt Hasselbeck in the NFL. ``In the '80s every year it was tough,'' Belichick said. ``It seems like San Francisco was in our division even though they weren't. We played them every year and we played them in the playoffs in '84, '86, '88 and '90 -- at least four playoff games. That offense was tough to deal with.'' As one who knows a thing or two about the position, Holmgren respects what Belichick and his staff have done with quarterback Matt Cassel, turning the career backup into a productive NFL starter. ``Cassel has really impressed me with what he's done, given his experience,'' Holmgren said. ``It's a credit to Bill and his staff and the support that he has around him. There's the case of a young quarterback who hasn't had a chance to play, gets his chance, but now he gets to throw the ball to Randy Moss. That's a pretty good deal. And he's got a veteran offensive line. He has Kevin Faulk. He has some guys that can really help him. But he's got to hold up his end of the bargain, and I think he's done it beautifully. I'm very, very impressed with the job he's doing.'' It's the kind of success story Holmgren has overseen throughout his career. He's retiring after the season, handing the Seahawks reins to Jim Mora and taking a least a year off before weighing his options. All Belichick knows is that a Holmgren-coached team will be ready to play today, no matter what the records say. ``This week we have our hands full,'' Belichick said. ``We are going to try to do the best that we can to be competitive in this game and go out there and play well. Every team has problems this time of year and we all have to deal with them. Right now, our focus is to go out there and win a game.'' - jtomase@bostonherald.com THE CHECKLIST Defense: Patriots Special Teams: Patriots Passing: Patriots Rushing: Patriots Coaching: Patriots The skinny: Get ready for a return of the run-up-the-score Pats. We've missed them. The Score: Patriots 40, Seahawks 13 Scouting report: Patriots at Seahawks TODAY -- 4:15 p.m., Qwest Field, Seattle TV/RADIO -- Ch. 4 (Dick Enberg and Randy Cross); WBCN-FM 104.1 (Gil Santos and Gino Cappelletti) THE RECORDS -- The Patriots are 7-5, tied for second in the AFC East, one game behind the Jets. The Seahawks are 2-10, tied for last in the NFC West, five games behind the Cardinals. THE LINE -- Patriots by 4 1/2 (over-under: 43 points) RECORDS VS. SPREAD -- Patriots 6-6; Seattle 5-7 SERIES HISTORY -- Teams have met just once since the Patriots last trip to Seattle in 1993, and that wasa a 30-20 Patriots win at Gillette Stadium in October 2004. The overall series is tied 7-7. HOW THEY RANK IN THE NFL HOW THEY RANK Patriots OFFENSE -- No. 9 overall (355.1 yards per game), No. 9 rushing (130.5 ypg), No. 11 passing (224.6 ypg) Seahawks OFFENSE -- No. 3 overall (257.3 ypg), No. 21 rushing (108.5 ypg), No. 31 passing (148.8) Patriots DEFENSE -- No. 13 overall (317.4 ypg), No. 14 vs. rush (105.6 ypg), No. 16 vs. pass (211.8 ypg) Seahawks DEFENSE -- No. 30 overall (386.7 ypg), No. 22 vs. rush (121.5 ypg), No. 32 vs. pass (265.2 ypg) FIVE THING TO KEEP AN EYE ON TODAY The theme of today's game should be ``Remember the Texans!'' Pats fans will no doubt remember what happened the week after their team was embarrassed by the Dolphins in a 2006 shutout loss. The Pats hosted the lowly Texans the following week and made them pay, romping to a 40-6 victory that seemed to be as much about expunging the pain of the previous week's loss as anything else. Now the Pats face a similar situation. They were humbled by the Steelers last Sunday, and today face one of the league's worst teams in Seattle. Don't be surprised if a similar bloodbath ensues. Here's what to look for today: 1. Vince Wilfork vs. Steve Vallos Who's Steve Vallos, you ask? Exactly. Vallos is a second-year reserve guard who has been forced into the starting role at center for the Seahawks because of injuries to incumbent Chris Spencer and bacjup Chris Gray, who retired. Wilfork is merely one of the top two or three nose tackles in the game and a force against even the most accomplished centers. Vallos was eaten up by Dallas' Jay Ratliff on Thanksgiving Day, and Ratliff is no Wilfork. By the time this one's over, Seahawks fans may be screaming, ``Oh, the humanity.'' 2. Jerod Mayo vs. John Carlson The Patriots selected Mayo 10th overall in the 2008 draft. Carlson didn't join the Seahawks for another round. Nonetheless, they'll be the two best rookies on the field and their matchup could be one of the best subplots of the game. Mayo has been a force vs. the run, but has often looked confused and a step slow in coverage. Carlson got off to a slow start while learning the complexities of the West Coast offense, but he responded with his first 100-yard game last week and could exploit what has been the soft underbelly of the Patriots defense over the middle. 3. Every corner not named Trufant The Seahawks own the worst pass defense in the league, and it's -- duh -- largely a function of some terrible play at cornerback. While Pro Bowl left corner Marcus Trufant has held up reasonably well and will likely shadow Randy Moss all day, Kelly Jennings and Josh Wilson have been overmatched whether playing outside or in the slot. Assuming he's not concussed from last week's violent hit, Wes Welker could have a field day underneath against these guys with No. 3 receiver Jabar Gaffney likely to see more than a few balls, too. 4. Break out those sack dances If the Patriots can't mount a pass rush today, then they may as well just pack up for the winter. The Seahawks will be starting backups at all three interior offensive line spots, and perennial Pro Bowl left tackle Walter Jones is finally showing his age in his 12th season and at age 34 is clearly slowing down. He was beaten cleanly for two sacks by Pro Bowler DeMarcus Ware last week. The Pats should have an edge in his matchup with Richard Seymour. This may also be the game Mike Vrabel gets mulitiple sacks for the first time since the opener. 5. Get in the zone Seahawks defenders have grumbled in recent weeks about the team's penchant for playing a soft zone defense rather than a more aggressive blitzing approach coupled with man-to-man coverage. The Cowboys scored on their first four possessions against the zone before the Seahawks got more aggressive with better results. If Seattle goes the soft route to take Randy Moss out of the game, then Wes Welker, Jabar Gaffney and tight end Benjamin Watson should have a field day. When the Seahawks play zone, they tend to generate zero pressure, which will make Matt Cassel's job even easier. --JOHN TOMASE