Marcus Trufant squinted into the autumn fog drifting off the Seattle Seahawks' practice field. He flashed a sheepish grin.
It was if he was a shy outcast, not a Seattle mainstay since his hometown team drafted him 11th overall in 2003.
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"I'm the new guy," the cornerback said jokingly Tuesday, after his first practice since he injured his lower back in July. "I'd been in rehab so long. I hadn't seen the sun -- or the rain -- for a long time. I'm outside, man. I'm playing football!"
Yes, the battered Seahawks are taking advantage of their bye week to get healthier. And not just by resting.
Trufant, who has been on the physically-unable-to-perform list since the start of training camp, said he hopes to play in Seattle's next game, Nov. 1 at Dallas. So does Leroy Hill. The Seahawks' outside linebacker practiced for the first time since he tore his groin during the Sept. 13 season opener.
Trufant returned from a disk issue in his back to join the second-team defense, as the Seahawks went back to basics in the first of two practices before coach Jim Mora gives them an extended weekend off beginning Thursday.
Trufant bumped and hounded starting wide receiver Nate Burleson. Trufant also turned a seemingly meaningless practice during a bye week into hope for a 2-4 team that needs some.
"I think I'm healed," Trufant said, adding he still has "a little maintenance" with his back.
That includes strengthening core muscles in his torso. The exercises are similar to the ones that Matt Hasselbeck has been doing for most of the last year to compensate for a bulging disk that cost Seattle's quarterback nine game in 2008.
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Trufant said his injury, which occurred when he twisted awkwardly while breaking on the ball in a drill just before training camp, was similar. But he joked that he's better off than Hasselbeck, and not just because he's 28 and the quarterback is 34.
"He's a quarterback. I'm a DB. So I kind of see myself as a better athlete," he said, laughing. "I've got to stay on it. It's a constant rehab thing."
First-year defensive coordinator Gus Bradley believes whether Trufant starts in place of season-long fill-in Josh Wilson against the Cowboys next week depends on whether he's physically up to it. Bradley believes learning the new defense he has installed will be a breeze for Trufant, who has been attending meetings and film sessions all season.
"Tru's a smart man. It won't take very long for him to pick up the scheme," Bradley said. "It's more the mentality of how he feels."
Hill said he initially believed his career might be over when he shredded his groin, when his legs were too wide while trying to make a tackle against the St. Louis Rams.
"I'll try to not do that again," he deadpanned.
The fifth-year veteran called it the worst pain he has ever had, but he now feels "perfect" following surgery performed by a specialist in Philadelphia.
"Oh, man, it felt good," Hill said of returning Tuesday. "Sitting on the couch seeing what's been going on, it hurt. It showed me how important football is to me."
The Seahawks also announced Tuesday that they had released left tackle Kyle Williams, a second-year pro who started in Sunday's 27-3 loss to the Arizona Cardinals because of injuries along the offensive line.
Williams began the season on Seattle's practice squad, but he played two weeks ago against the Jacksonville Jaguars after Brandon Frye suffered a season-ending neck injury. The Seahawks signed 10-year pro Damion McIntosh for depth last week because the team also was missing injured veterans Walter Jones and Sean Locklear.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
