Tight end Jerramy Stevens won't be after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery earlier this week.

Hamlin suffered a fractured skull when he was assaulted outside a Seattle nightclub in October and missed the remainder of the season. He saw a doctor in March, who cleared him to play football, and the next step in his comeback was to be cleared by the team. The Seahawks have OK'd him to participate in noncontact drills, president Tim Ruskell said Wednesday.

Safeties suddenly aren't so scarce for the Seahawks, especially after they acquired Mike Green from the Chicago Bears for a sixth-round pick in a trade announced Tuesday.

"It takes a little bit of pressure off," Ruskell said of acquiring Green. "I look at him as insurance."

Green was a starter for three seasons at strong safety in Chicago before he was replaced by Chris Harris last season. Green can play either safety position.

The Seahawks signed Shaunard Harts earlier this offseason. Harts did not appear in an NFL game last season but was with Kansas City the previous four. That doesn't rule out the possibility Seattle would add another player at that position in the draft.

"If there is a safety that we had evaluated at that round and we like the guy, we would take him," Ruskell said.

CORNERING THE MARKET: Count Ty Law among those waiting to see if the Seahawks select a cornerback in this weekend's draft.

Ruskell said that conversations with Law have gone quiet, and the team told him they wouldn't be in touch until after the draft.

Law didn't sign with the New York Jets last year until August.

STATUS QUO: Ruskell said conversations with coach Mike Holmgren's future beyond next season are ongoing, and have been positive.

Holmgren has one year remaining on the eight-year contract he signed in 1999.

Josh Brown, one of the heroes of the 2005 Seahawks season with his clutch field goals, is returning to the team.

Brown, Seattle's fourth-year kicker, signed his restricted free-agent tender today. He will return for a 2006 salary of $721,600.

Brown was a seventh-round draft pick out of Nebraska in 2003. He made 18 of 25 field-goal attempts last season, and tied Norm Johnson's team record after connecting on five field goals of 50 yards or more. He also kicked two game-winning field goals, against Dallas and the New York Giants.

The Seahawks quarterback throws the first pitch of the game for a strike to honorary catcher Richie Sexson on Opening Day.

The Pittsburgh Steelers? Hah. They didn't scare Matt Hasselbeck nearly as much as the thought of embarrassing himself in front of 45,000 fans.

When the Seattle Seahawks' quarterback threw out the first pitch at Monday's Seattle Mariners-Los Angeles Angels game, he just didn't want to ruin his reputation.

"I think I was more nervous for that than I was for the Super Bowl," Hasselbeck said afterward. "Most of my teammates, they weren't exactly supportive; they were heckling me."

Fortunately for the Boston native and longtime Red Sox fan, Hasselbeck's debut as an unofficial opening-day starter went just fine. He threw the ball over the plate, hitting ceremonial catcher Richie Sexson's glove right around the belt.

"They heckled me quite a bit. It wasn't quite the support I was looking for," Hasselbeck said of accompanying Seahawks teammates Sean Locklear, J.P. Darche, Isaiah Kacyvenski, Seneca Wallace, Jerheme Urban, Chris Spencer, Marcus Trufant and Mack Strong. "But hey, it worked out. In (6-foot-8) Richie Sexson, I couldn't have picked a better guy to be the catcher. I just told myself: if you miss, miss high."

While the thought of a Pro Bowl quarterback misfiring on a meaningless pitch might sound far-fetched, Hasselbeck said it's not as easy as it sounds. Although he pitched in high school - "I did," Hasselbeck said, "but not well" - the Seahawks' quarterback said he was just hoping to get the ball over the plate Monday.

"I think for whatever reason people think that if you can throw a football, you can throw a baseball," he said. "That's not necessarily the case. I'm living proof."

The Seahawks have agreed on the parameters of a contract with free-agent linebacker Julian Peterson, who has spent the past six seasons with the 49ers.

Peterson's agent, Kevin Poston, said Tuesday the contract is for $54 million over seven years and includes $18.5 million guaranteed.

The Seahawks had no comment. A spokesman with the 49ers, who had been hoping to keep Peterson, said the team has been informed that a framework for a contract with Seattle is in place.

Delores Peterson, Julian's mother, confirmed from the family's Maryland home that her son was going to Seattle. She said Julian could not come to the phone because he was "swamped entertaining" dozens of friends who had piled into the house to celebrate his move from a last-place team that has gone 6-26 the last two seasons to the NFC champions.

Hutchinson's contract was the subject of a hearing in Philadelphia where a special master was to decide how much of the Minnesota Vikings' offer the Seahawks must match to keep Hutchinson, considered a key to Seattle's run to the Super Bowl this year.

The Vikings seven-year offer included $16 million guaranteed and would be the richest deal ever given to a guard.

But the contract also contained a provision that would guarantee the entire $49 million if Hutchinson is not the team's highest-paid offensive lineman at any time after the first year of the contract. The league and the Seahawks argued that Seattle didn't have to match that provision on Monday that is all Seattle has to match.

But Richard Berthelsen, an attorney for the NFL Players Association who attended the hearing, told The Associated Press that the Seahawks told the special master on Monday that the team had restructured the contract of six-time Pro Bowl tackle Walter Jones, currently Seattle's highest-paid offensive linemen, to avoid the conflict.

Jones received $54.5 million -- with up to $20 million in a signing bonus and incentives -- over seven years to remain a Seahawk last April.

Berthelsen said the Seahawks told the special master that Jones had agreed to add an eighth, voidable year to his deal. That would mean Jones' annual base salary would dip to $6.81 million -- just below Hutchinson's $7 million annual average if Seattle matched Minnesota's offer. Thus, the Seahawks would not have to guarantee the rest of Hutchinson's new deal.

Defensive end John Abraham is intent on playing for the Falcons, his agent, Tony Agnone, confirmed Sunday. The contract agreement he reached Friday with Atlanta and his word are his bond.

But Abraham might not have the final say.

The New York Jets, who own the three-time Pro Bowl selection's rights, have thwarted Abraham's relocation by treating the Falcons' trade offer of a second-round draft pick as insufficient. Instead, the Jets have agreed to trade him to the Seattle Seahawks for a first-round draft choice, and that decision has left Abraham "not happy," according to Agnone.

In a brief e-mail to the Journal-Constitution, Agnone said there had been no developments in the saga over the weekend. He added that there have been no new contract talks between Abraham and the Seahawks, and that Abraham is intent on suiting up for the Falcons.

Atlanta officials said they would not stop their pursuit of Abraham, who has 53 1/2 career sacks and would bolster a defensive line in dire need of a pass-rushing end from the right side. Whether that means they'll have to sweeten their offer to the Jets remains to be seen.

The remarks from Abraham's agent were the first since his

client was placed in football purgatory Friday afternoon.

The tricky part of this scenario is that for any trade to be consummated, Abraham must come to contract terms with the team for which he would play. At the same time, the Jets have the right to get the best compensation possible, which Seattle has offered — 31st overall selection in the April 29-30 draft. The Falcons' second-rounder is the 47th pick overall.

The sign-and-trade stipulation is a result of the Jets designating Abraham, a free agent, their "franchise player," which means they hold his rights for a season unless he's traded.

New York, which is shifting to a 3-4 scheme that would make Abraham an awkward fit, does not have to trade Abraham and could make him play under a one-year contract worth $8.3 million.

Though things were quiet over the weekend, the Falcons confirm talks are expected to resume.

The Seahawks will have the 31st pick in the NFL draft April 29-30. Some needs will be filled by free agents, but this is how the Seahawks stack up this offseason.

Highest priority: Free safety, running back, outside linebacker, cornerback.

The Seahawks could lose players at these positions. The future of free safety Ken Hamlin is up in the air because of head injuries suffered last fall, and fill-in Marquand Manuel, though expected to be kept, could become a free agent. The team can't go into next season with unproven Etric Pruitt as the only free safety on the roster. Running back becomes critical if the Seahawks don't re-sign Shaun Alexander and/or Maurice Morris. At linebacker, the team will need some depth if Jamie Sharper is a salary-cap casualty and Kevin Bentley is not re-signed. Same goes for cornerback, where injuries took their toll on the consistency of the pass defense, which was the most underachieving area on defense in 2005.

Medium priority: Guard, wide receiver, fullback, defensive tackle, defensive end, punter.

Left guard Steve Hutchinson has been given the transition tag but could still leave if the Seahawks don't match a big offer for him. Right guard Chris Gray is nearing the end of his career, though he has been durable, and Floyd Womack has to be ready to assume more of a role. If the Seahawks lose Joe Jurevicius to free agency, they'll lose some big numbers, size and plenty of intangibles at receiver. And Peter Warrick might go elsewhere. Fullback Mack Strong's career is in its twilight. He is an impending free agent but likely will be back. Defensive tackle Rocky Bernard might be lost to free agency after his productive year in 2005. The team always seems to be looking for a pass-rush specialist, perhaps a lighter and faster rush end. Punter Tom Rouen could be replaced by a more affordable player.

Low priority: Offensive tackle, center, quarterback, middle linebacker, kicker, tight end.

While the Seahawks might look for a good backup for Lofa Tatupu at middle linebacker, they have depth at the other positions. Kicker Josh Brown, a restricted free agent, has earned at least the low-end tender of close to $700,000 that would keep him in Seattle next season. Although the cornerbacks struggled at times in 2005, this is a fairly young and still experienced group. Among tight ends, the Seahawks could lose Ryan Hannam in free agency, Itula Mili barely played last season and Jerramy Stevens struggled mightily in the Super Bowl, so the team could look for a tight end in the draft.