Alexander rushed for 150 yards against the Rams, 195 against the Carolina Panthers, 160 against the San Francisco 49ers, 176 the second time the Seahawks played St. Louis and 154 the second time they played the Cardinals. He scored 16 touchdowns and rushed for 1,696 yards.
Meanwhile, the Seahawks struggled, going 4-4 in November and December. All the while, Holmgren praised Alexander for his season, for the change in his demeanor, saying, "He came into this season, clearly, with a little different mind-set. He practiced as well as he's practiced since we've been together."
Seahawks' Shaun alexander apologized to teammates for his behavior. "I'm sorry for just treating you like a businessperson. From now on, I'm going to treat you like a brother."
(John Froschauer - AP)
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_____From The Post_____
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Seattle running back Shaun Alexander has a new attitude.
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Coach Mike Shanahan appears to be on the hot seat in Denver again.
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And then, with the playoffs looming and the Seahawks wobbling, all the goodwill Alexander built this summer unraveled. After a 37-14 loss to the New York Jets, a loss that made the Seahawks a 7-7 first-place team, Alexander said, "We lay eggs consistently. As sickening as it is, we'll still be in first place. It's like throwing salt in a wound. It's like a rock in a shoe. It's terrible the way we do it."
While that comment irked some teammates, the real firestorm came Sunday. With Alexander trailing Jets running back Curtis Martin for the league rushing title by a single yard, the Seahawks ran a quarterback sneak on second and goal from the 1. It was their last offensive play, it turned out, and the game-winning touchdown in their division-clinching victory over the Falcons.
After the game, Alexander implied that Holmgren denied him the rushing title intentionally, that he "got stabbed in the back." What was supposed to be a glorious celebration of the third division title in team history turned into a Shaun Alexander circus.
The next day, Alexander backtracked from his comments, but the damage was already done. "I'm human," he said. "The thing is, anybody can, at one time, pop off. And I've done it several times. In my position, I have to own up to it."
So which Shaun Alexander is it, teammates wondered? The one with the ever-present smile, running his foundation mentoring young men, preaching the gospel to anyone who will listen, apologizing to teammates who found him selfish and aloof?
Or the one with a list of the 10 richest people in America hanging in his locker, the one they said didn't practice hard before this season, the one who accused his coach of intentionally denying him the rushing title?
"Our team is fine," Alexander said. "They love seeing me get passionate about anything because I keep a lot of stuff in. The guys know my heart."
