It was a busy week in Seahawk news, from the Senior Bowl to coaching moves to Jim Mora’s comments on Mark Sanchez to Kurt Warner retiring to the reports of Patrick Kerney retiring and then not retiring.

Let’s start with the “retirement” talk.

Warner’s decision to hang up his cleats after a Hall of Fame-caliber 12-year career is great news to the rest of the NFC West. With the unproven Matt Leinart poised to step back into the starting role, it looks like the West will be wide open in 2010. Who knows Leinart’s strengths and weaknesses better than Pete Carroll, his former coach at USC?

As for Kerney’s reported retirement party that reportedly didn’t happen, it doesn’t matter. Kerney won’t be with the Seahawks in 2010. If the battered and broken-down 33-year-old defensive end doesn’t retire, he and his $5.17 million salary will be released. He has had no impact since recording 14.5 sacks in 2007, his first year in Seattle. Since there likely will not be a salary cap in 2010, releasing him would simply save the Hawks the trouble of overpaying him for a third straight year, with no other charges accrued.

On top of the Kerney drama, there were Mora’s comments on Mark Sanchez, which some people twisted to mean that Mora wanted to draft the USC quarterback over linebacker Aaron Curry.

In an interview with NFL Network last week, Mora was asked about the Jets’ rookie whom some people wanted the Seahawks to draft fourth overall in 2009.

“We really liked him. I really liked him. The offensive staff really liked him,” Mora said. “We had trouble getting a consensus in the room as to whether he’d be the right fit for our organization at that time.

“So, the Jets jumped up and picked him,” Mora said.  “And we drafted Aaron Curry, who we were very happy with. But I’ll tell you this: I was a big Mark Sanchez fan then, and I’m a bigger one now. I think this guy is going to be a great one in this league.”

ProFootballTalk did its usual trick of trying to turn Mora’s comments into a controversy, intimating that Mora wanted Sanchez and had been overruled by former general manager Tim Ruskell.

But nowhere did Mora say he wanted Sanchez over Curry. And it would have been surprising if he had, considering he is a defensive coach who should have been stoked to get the best defensive player in the draft and also keeping in mind that he heaped all kinds of praise on veteran passer Matt Hasselbeck before and during the season.

Sanchez and Curry had similarly bad rookie seasons, with a few ups and many downs. Sanchez just had a better team around him. Curry was definitely the right pick for Seattle. And Carroll is already watching film on the young linebacker to see what he does well and what he needs to work on and to get an early idea of how to use him.

Meanwhile, Carroll and his new staff (which grew with the hiring of former players Kris Richard and Jeff Ulbrich) spent the week in Mobile, Ala., trying to get an idea of how to answer the question of whom they will draft this year.

Some think Carroll might be partial to drafting his USC safety, Taylor Mays, with the 14^th pick overall. But the Hawks might be more likely to use that pick on a lineman.  

Despite a reportedly iffy game, Idaho guard Mike Iupati made many heads turn in Senior Bowl practices. He and Iowa left tackle Bryan Bulaga would make quite the 1-2 draft card, although neither is rated as high as No. 6. The Hawks would need to try to trade out of the top 10.

If the Hawks stay at 6, they probably will be looking at everyone’s favorite, speedy Clemson back C.J. Spiller, or guys like Tennessee safety Eric Berry, Oklahoma State left tackle Russell Okung or Georgia Tech end Derrick Morgan.

The order of need is LT, DE, S, RB. But Berry is the best of that bunch, and if he falls to the Hawks at No. 6, Carroll probably would jump on him – unless GM John Schneider had a lucrative trade-down worked out.