AP

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Seneca Wallace scrambles out of trouble against the Oakland Raiders in the first half of an NFL football game at Qwest Field in Seattle Monday, Nov. 6, 2006.

RENTON, Wash. - Finally, after years of waiting and wanting, Seneca Wallace may be getting his chance at receiver.

Bobby Engram remains out until perhaps October with a broken shoulder. Ben Obomanu is out for the season with a broken clavicle. Deion Branch looks and sounds as if he's still weeks away from coming back from reconstructive knee surgery.

Courtney Taylor, who has five career receptions, will start Sunday's season opener at Buffalo opposite Nate Burleson, the only remaining healthy proven veteran. Jordan Kent and Logan Payne will be the third and fourth receivers. They were on the practice squad last season.

Michael Bumpus, the undrafted rookie free agent from Washington State who was impressive in the preseason, remains on the practice squad -- for now, at least.

Who's left? The dynamic Wallace, who caught two passes during the 2007 regular season and one for a huge play in the NFC championship game in January 2006.

"He'll do kind of what he does. We're always ready to stick him in an emergency," coach Mike Holmgren said Wednesday, without acknowledging "emergency" is the current state of Seattle's receivers.

Wallace has been waiting years for Holmgren to find a third, veteran quarterback he trusts so the team could play Wallace elsewhere without fear of losing to injury the lone able backup to Pro Bowl passer Matt Hasselbeck. Charlie Frye, the former starter in Cleveland, showed during last month's preseason he could handle the offense if needed.

"Exactly. I'm excited about it," Wallace said last month of Frye's progress and how it may free him to play at receiver and kick returner. "It's going to help us out."

Wallace is also among the candidates to return punts on Sunday. Others: 2007 returner Burleson, rookie running back Justin Forsett, starting running back Maurice Morris and Pro Bowl cornerback Marcus Trufant.

Holmgren said that would be a game-time decision.

Trufant laughed when asked about returning punts, saying he was a last resort. He hasn't done it since he returned 38 punts in a career at Washington State that ended in 2002.

When asked if it was realistic that he would put a starter back to return punts and risk even more injuries, Holmgren said: "Right now, anything's realistic. That's why I am having trouble."

GOOD GRACES: Holmgren said when Rocky Bernard and Jordan Babineaux return Monday from the one-game suspensions they received from the league, they will return to normal status. That means Bernard, suspended after a domestic violence case, will start Sept. 14 against San Francisco and Babineaux, who violated the league's substance abuse policy, will be the nickel defensive back then.

Holmgren believes Bernard in particular should not have been suspended. He cited his knowledge of the case, which the coach wants to remain private.

"Players in the league, absolutely we expect them to act a certain way," Holmgren said. "But I've said this from Day 1: To take every instance and put it in a big, giant bowl and not separate one from another, I've never chosen to do that. If I think I know the circumstances surrounding a particular instance, I've always reacted -- at the club level -- a certain way (to consider extenuating circumstances).

"The league now is really ... entering a phase of a zero-tolerance policy, which in and of itself is not a bad thing. I mean, let's send the message, let's send it clear. But without getting into any more details than I have to, there are always a number of stories that come out in an instance like that. And I think, at times, it can be somewhat misleading."

QUICK HITS: Pro Bowl LB Lofa Tatupu missed most of practice Wednesday with a sore right knee and was wearing a leg sleeve over it. Holmgren said Tatupu will play. ... Maurice Morris will start at RB on Sunday, with Julius Jones likely to start next week against San Francisco. The coach reiterated for about the 100th time he considers them co-starters and that he won't get wrapped up in who starts. The players keep saying they are OK with that. ... Sounds like Ray Willis will start at RT Sunday instead of Sean Locklear, who missed another practice with a left knee injury he's had for weeks. "If we were playing in the Super Bowl, I could think Locklear would suit up and have a shot at playing. I'm not sure we'd be doing the right thing by pushing him into action," Holmgren said. ... The players chose their captains for the season. Hasselbeck and LT Walter Jones again lead the offense and newly elected Deon Grant, a safety, joins Tatupu in charge of the defense. The captains for special teams are Lance Laury and D.D. Lewis.