Well, here it is: the Seahawks’ chance to make themselves relevant again.

It’s no exaggeration: This game against the Arizona Cardinals is the turning point in Seattle’s season. If the Seahawks avenge their embarrassingly inept 27-3 loss from last month, they will draw a game behind Arizona in the NFC West and a game short of .500, giving themselves a chance to rally and win the division. But if the Hawks lose to Arizona, they will fall to 3-6, three games behind the Cardinals with no chance to win the West and basically no chance to compete for a wild-card spot.

So it’s do or die in Week 10. A midseason playoff game. How do the Hawks win it?

For starters, the offense has to show up this time.

Last month the Hawks were starting their fourth-string left tackle and third-string left guard. And Matt Hasselbeck paid the price as Kyle Williams and Steve Vallos got schooled by the Cardinals. Williams was part of two sacks surrendered and also had a false start. The Cardinals often stacked three defenders against Williams and Vallos, who was making his first start at left guard, and they just couldn’t figure out what the Cardinals were doing. It didn’t help that center Chris Spencer is just not savvy enough to make the proper adjustments.

The entire offense was held to 128 yards, although a third of that came on a 42-yard fake-punt pass from Jon Ryan to John Carlson.

Going against the defense that was ranked No. 1 in the NFL against the run, the Hawks rushed for a franchise-low 14 yards and averaged just 1.3 per carry. The 11 attempts were the third-fewest in team history. They were 0 for 11 on third downs and had a franchise-low seven first downs. They also gave up five sacks, with Hasselbeck being hit nine times. No wonder the Hawks finally decided to pull the trigger on signing Damion McIntosh after that game.

McIntosh has started the past two games, but he will be replaced this weekend by Sean Locklear, who is expected to make his first start since suffering a high ankle sprain in Week 2. And Rob Sims, who also missed the first Arizona game, will make his third straight start since returning from an ankle injury himself. It will be the sixth different line combination in nine games for Seattle, but this is the best unit the Hawks can field.

Last time against Arizona, offensive coordinator Greg Knapp failed to come up with a scheme – either before the game or at halftime – that would protect Hasselbeck and enable the team to move the ball. But the Hawks might have accidentally stumbled upon something last week against Detroit. Even though Knapp kept calling for downfield passes, Hasselbeck simply decided to get rid of the ball quickly, dumping it to his backs and taking what the defense gave him. It resulted in a franchise-record 39 completions.

That’s the plan the Hawks should have this time. They should come out throwing, using quick tempo and misdirection. They should use Seneca Wallace on every other series. They should run screen after screen, flea flickers, end-arounds. They should open the game with an onside kick. Basically, they need to pull out all the stops to win this game.

Desperate measures? Yeah, for desperate times like these.

It’s the only way the Hawks will regain their relevance.

Three and out: Q&A

Q: Can the Seahawks stop Arizona’s offense?

A: The running game, yes. Arizona’s rushing attack is even worse than Seattle’s, believe it or not. Seattle ranks 30^th at 84.5 yards per game. Arizona is 31^st at 79.5. Seattle’s big concern will be stopping Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald and the passing game. Fitzgerald has turned into the best receiver in the NFL and has destroyed Seattle over the years. In the past three meetings, he has 28 catches for 381 yards and three touchdowns. And he’s not alone. Anquan Boldin usually catches at least seven passes per game against the Hawks, and Steve Breaston has scored a touchdown in the past two meetings. The Hawks are unlikely to get much pressure on Warner unless they blitz, and if they blitz it will leave Marcus Trufant, Josh Wilson and Ken Lucas in single coverage against those three receivers. So, stop the passing game? Won’t happen. Unless the Seattle offense simply keeps the ball away from Warner.

Q: How would you defend Fitzgerald?

A: Double him on every play and triple him on some. In the 2005 NFC championship game, the Seahawks pulled out a unique triangle defense against Carolina’s Steve Smith. They hit him at the line with a linebacker on every play and then doubled after that with two defensive backs, creating a three-man bracket. Of course, the Hawks could do that against Carolina because the Panthers didn’t have many other weapons.

Against Arizona, the Hawks can’t spare three players for Fitzgerald on every play, but why not use the linebacker treatment on him? He moves around a lot before the snap, lining up on either side or in the slot, which makes him hard to defend, but the Hawks should chip him with a linebacker whenever possible.

Q: Should the Seahawks abandon the run altogether?

A: No. They should throw to set up the run. If Hasselbeck completes a couple of longer passes, it will soften up the defense enough that some runs would work. The other way the Hawks could make the run work is to run a jumbo package, using a sixth lineman lined up at tight end and stacking two fullbacks in the backfield. Short yardage play anyone? Or they could spread it out with four receivers, something Knapp doesn’t typically do but probably should do more often just to see what kind of mismatches he can get.