| RECAP | BOX SCORE SEATTLE (AP) -- Matt Hasselbeck is gaining confidence filling in
for an injured Trent Dilfer as the Seattle Seahawks starting quarterback.
|  | | Medical personnel hoist Jerome Woods onto a cart after the Chiefs safety broke his leg. |
Hasselback passed for his first touchdown of the preseason in
the first half as the Seahawks beat the Kansas City Chiefs 17-14
Saturday night.
Dilfer was lost for 4-to-8 weeks in the Seahawks' exhibition
opener with a sprained right knee. Seattle (1-2) isn't sure if
he'll be ready for its regular-season opener Sept. 8 in Oakland.
"I feel like personally my decisions were pretty good,'' Hasselbeck said. "Overall, I'm pretty encouraged. I definitely had fun out there and it's been awhile since I had fun on the football field. I enjoyed it.''
So did Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren.
"He played better,'' Holmgren said. "He practiced better
during the week. I was happy he had some success. At the
quarterback position, you need some success.''
It was a costly loss for the Chiefs, who lost starting free safety Jerome Woods with a broken right leg in the second quarter.
Woods, Kansas City's first-round draft choice in 1996, was
injured with 11:06 left in the period and was taken off the field
on a cart into the locker room to have his leg X-rayed.
After the game, coach Dick Vermeil said Woods, who is in his
sixth year as a starter, will undergo surgery as soon as possible.
Woods will be gone for the season.
"We lost more than a football game,'' Vermeil said. "We lost a fine free safety tonight. It hurts, he's our key guy back there. It's a very sophisticated, complicated scheme that requires him to do a lot of things and it hurts.''
Backup strong safety Jason Belser will take over for Woods as
the Chiefs' starter at free safety.
The Seahawks led 10-0 at halftime after Kansas City veteran
quarterback Trent Green threw three interceptions in the second
quarter.
Green, who led the NFL with 24 interceptions last season, was
picked off by free safety Curtis Fuller twice and also by
linebacker Marcus Bell. Fuller got his interceptions after Green's
passes bounced off wide receiver Curtis Jackson.
Vermeil blamed Jackson, not Green, for two of the interceptions.
"We batted the ball around playing volleyball and gave people
chances to intercept the ball,'' he said.
Fuller, a fourth-round draft choice of the Seahawks from Texas
Christian last season, started one game as a rookie.
"This was a great opportunity for me to build some confidence
in myself and for my teammates to have confidence in me,'' Fuller
said.
Hasselbeck threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Darrell Jackson in
the second period to put Seattle ahead 10-0.
Hasselbeck missed another TD chance when he overthrew Jackson at
the Kansas City 10 from the Chiefs' 41 late in the opening quarter.
Playing the entire first half, Seattle's starting quarterback
for 12 games last season completed 8 of 13 passes for 74 yards and
one touchdown, with no interceptions. He was intercepted three
times and lost a fumble in Seattle's first two exhibition games.
Veteran Mark Rypien, 39, who was signed as quarterback insurance
by the Seahawks on Monday because of Dilfer's injury, played in the
fourth quarter and led a touchdown drive. Rod Phillips scored on a
1-yard run to put Seattle ahead 17-7.
Rian Lindell, who is trying to keep his job as the Seahawks'
kicker in face of competition from Aaron Elling, kicked his first
field goal of the exhibition season with a 40-yarder in the second
quarter to give Seattle a 3-0 lead.
Green was 9-for-20 for 86 yards, with three interceptions.
The Chiefs (2-1) scored on a 3-yard run by reserve running back
Derrick Blaylock, who was inactive the entire 2001 season with
Kansas City, in the third quarter.
They added a second TD with 5:15 left on a 1-yard pass from
backup quarterback Todd Collins to Ryan Collins.
Game notes
The Chiefs lost backup CB Ray Crockett with a left shoulder contusion in the first quarter. ... Kansas City rookie FB Omar Easy, a fourth-round draft choice from Penn State, sustained a rib
contusion in the final quarter. ... The Chiefs lost rookie LB Tony Newson with a deep gash in his arm. ... Seahawks KR James Williams opened the second half with a 52-yard return. ... Chiefs PR J.J.
Moses had a 52-yard return late in the first half. ... Seahawks second-round draft pick DE Anton Palepoi sprained a knee.
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