Matt Hasselbeck began this week in what his coach described as excruciating pain.
The Seattle Seahawks' quarterback was too intense in his rehabilitation, trying to accelerate his return from a broken rib.
"Yeah, Monday was a tough day. In the 17 days that we've had here, that was probably the worst day," Hasselbeck said, referring to the time since San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis hit him high in the back on a dive for the goal line during a Sept. 20 game.
By Wednesday, Hasselbeck had willed himself through the Seahawks' entire practice. He wore bulky rib pads and twisted to stretch his torso throughout his first on-field work since the injury.
2009 Statistics
Comp/Att: 35/54
Yards/TD/INT: 376/3/2
Passer Rating: 88.2
It shows, in coach Jim Mora's words, how Hasselbeck "is without question doing everything possible to get out on the football field" for Sunday's home game against the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-2).
It also shows how desperate his 1-3 team is to save its season after three consecutive losses. Seattle already is essentially three games behind San Francisco (3-1) for first place in the NFC West.
"The team has not started off the way that we wanted to, the way that we expected to," Hasselbeck said moments after he split first-team plays with backup Seneca Wallace, the starter the last two games.
"Again this week, coach Mora asked each guy to basically answer the question, 'What are you willing to sacrifice for this team to have the kind of season we want to have?' Sometimes it's more time to come back from an injury. Sometimes you just got to find a way, even if you don't know how. You just got to find it."
Hasselbeck found a way to practice. Can he find a way to play against the Jaguars?
"I don't know," said Hasselbeck, who missed nine games last season with a bulging disk in his back. "I want to be fair to the team. I think, right now, what my job is is just to give the coaching staff and my teammates everything I've got, and at the same time, be fair to Seneca. And then let the coaching staff make a decision based on what the film looks like, if I'm able to make the throws, obviously talk to the team doctor and the trainers and all that."
Meanwhile, nine-time Pro Bowl tackle Walter Jones will not return until at least November, if at all this season.
Mora said the team has decided Jones will back off trying to return from two knee surgeries.
The 35-year-old anchor to Seattle's offensive line for the last decade now will be reassessed after the bye week, before a game at Dallas on Nov. 1. Dallas was the site of Jones' last game, Thanksgiving Day. He played with painkilling injections in his left knee, then had microfracture surgery to regenerate cartilage.
Brandon Frye, who was released last month by the Miami Dolphins, will start again for Jones against the Jaguars.
The team is hoping the next three weeks of rest will be enough for Jones to be ready for the final 10 games of the season. If he isn't, Jones might go on the injured-reserve list. That would end his season and perhaps his career, given his age and the severity of his knee injury.
When asked if there was a date at which they would end Jones' season if his knee isn't ready, Mora said: "Yeah, but it's not firm.
"We're talking about a Hall of Famer. And so there's a lot of factors that go into it. What's best for the team? What kind of respect do you show for Walter, if Walter can get back? How long do we wait for him? What if we IR'd him and then two weeks later he was ready to go? Would you look back and just be sick about it?"
Four more starters already have been declared out for Sunday's game -- offensive linemen Sean Locklear and Rob Sims, linebacker Leroy Hill and cornerback Marcus Trufant.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
