LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) -Matt Hasselbeck wanted no part of it. Why would any quarterback want to face the NFL's stingiest defense?

It shouldn't come as a surprise, then, that he shed no tears when the Carolina Panthers knocked the Chicago Bears out of the playoffs last season. A week later, Hasselbeck really had reason to celebrate when the Seattle Seahawks beat the Panthers for the NFC championship.

``I was not rooting for that matchup,'' Hasselbeck said. ``They're a great defense. Why would you want to have to go to Chicago or even have them come here? That would be a very tough way to go. We don't have a choice this year.''

The Seahawks and Bears finally meet Sunday night in a game that could have tiebreaker implications for the playoffs. Both teams are 3-0. The Seahawks have never won their first four, while the Bears last did it in 1991.

``I know it's going to be a good indication of who's going to be the front-runner,'' Chicago defensive tackle Tank Johnson said.

But both teams are facing questions.

Can the Seahawks win without league MVP Shaun Alexander?

Can the Bears get their running game going against a team that's second in defending the rush?

Will Seattle's four-wide receiver set work against the league's fourth-ranked defense?

Alexander will apparently miss Sunday's game after a bruised bone in his left foot cracked during last week's 42-30 victory over the New York Giants.

The Seahawks announced Monday that Alexander would miss four weeks, but on Wednesday, he was not wearing his protective boot when he showed up at team headquarters. He told coach Mike Holmgren he felt great after two days of prayer and even jumped around on the foot, but another round of tests revealed the bone had not healed.

So he's expected to sit for the first time since being drafted in 2000, with Maurice Morris making the fifth start of his career. Instead of the running back who ran for 1,880 yards and scored a league-record 28 touchdowns (27 rushing) last season, the Seahawks will hand the ball to someone who has 872 yards in four-plus seasons.

Hasselbeck said he's not sure how losing Alexander will impact the Seahawks' offense.

``In some areas, it's not a big deal, but in others it is because he's been the guy here,'' Hasselbeck said. ``It's never easy when you lose a player like that.''

Coach Mike Holmgren told Morris to ``have fun'' with his opportunity.

``I was just encouraging him,'' he said. ``And he was very serious and he's ready to go.''

The Bears were quick to praise Morris.

``You've got to give the backup, Morris, a lot of respect because he's a five-year veteran, he gets in the game a lot,'' Bears cornerback Charles Tillman said. ``He catches the ball, he runs the ball and he runs hard. You've definitely got to respect the guy. You can't say, 'The game's in the bag,' because as soon as you do that, that particular player will just run over you and destroy you.''

The Bears have their own issues in the running game, with their average down from 4.3 yards per carry last year to 2.7. One reason they cite is opponents are stacking up against the run, and with an improved passing game, there are fewer opportunities on the ground. Quarterback Rex Grossman suggested there's nothing wrong, that the Bears have just missed breaking off several long runs.

``Sometimes, statistics are misleading,'' he said.

Thomas Jones has 181 yards. Cedric Benson ran for a total of 59 the first two games and did not play in last week's 19-16 win over Minnesota. Columns suggesting he was sulking and might be in poor standing followed, which led to this comment from coach Lovie Smith.

``There is inaccurate information coming out about Cedric Benson and whether we're disappointed in him, the reason why he didn't play last week,'' Smith said. ``I'd just like our fans to know Cedric Benson practiced very well last week. He's doing everything that we've asked him to do right now. He's a big part of what we're going to do around here. I couldn't be more pleased with how he's handling playing behind a good player in Thomas Jones. Hopefully, this week we'll get him some more playing time.''

With former Super Bowl MVP Deion Branch in the fold after being acquired in a trade this month from New England, the Seahawks unveiled a four-receiver set and took a 42-3 lead into the fourth quarter last week. Hasselbeck, who tied the team record with five touchdown passes, said there was no way for the Giants to prepare for that. The Seahawks won't have that element of surprise this week.

But they have an opportunity. So do the Bears.

``Over the last couple of years, we've been trying to get respect from across the league and across the nation,'' Johnson said.

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