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SEATTLE - Michael Bennett was asked to analyze where the Seattle Seahawks stand, halfway through defence of their first title and already having to play from behind in the NFC West.Bennett wasnt interested in playing along. But he does believe the Seahawks are getting closer to the form that made them champions a season ago.Im not a (general manager) so I dont assess the team in that kind of way, Bennett said. I just go out there and do my job. But I would say were on the up and up.The Seahawks (5-3) get another chance to show theyre rounding into contention on Sunday, hosting the struggling New York Giants (3-5). Because of a brutal upcoming schedule, facing the Giants is essentially a must-win game for the Seahawks. They still have two games remaining against both Arizona and San Francisco, but already trail the Cardinals by two games in the division.You can never run a race looking at someone else and watching them run their race, trying to do what they do, Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman said. Were going to run our race, and at the end of the day, people are going to have to come in here and deal with us regardless, so it doesnt matter what they do_if we control what we can control, well be where we want to be.In a similar regard, the Giants cant afford dropping any further behind Philadelphia and Dallas in the NFC East if they have aspirations of contenting. The Giants have the added challenge of flying across the country to play Seattle after a Monday night home game against the Colts.A win can do a lot of things for you and put you back on track, Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. Certainly the challenge is there for us this week, but nevertheless we look forward to it.Here are other things to watch as the teams meet for the fourth time in five seasons:GIANT INFIRMARY: Injuries have left New Yorks secondary signing nearly anyone with a pulse.Prince Amukamara was the latest defensive back to land on injured reserve with a torn biceps suffered against Indianapolis. His replacement Zack Bowman was taken to a hospital on Thursday to be examined for abdominal pain. Even before Amukamaras injury, the Giants are without Walter Thurmond III and Trumaine McBride at cornerback, and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie has been playing through injuries.Were trying to put together a bunch of no-name guys so there isnt any way anybody can prepare for them, Coughlin joked.WAYWARD WILSON: Russell Wilson was far from his best last week against Oakland. For the first time this season, Wilson completed less than 50 per cent of his passes and for a change lacked answers for why he was so off-target against the Raiders.It was just an off day, Wilson said. You get back to the basics and the fundamentals of the game of football and keep growing ... and keep doing whatever it takes to win.Seattles passing offence has been in transition since the trade of Percy Harvin. Wilson has not topped 200 yards in the air in three of Seattles past four games.PICK PARTY: Manning has not thrown an interception in the last four games, a streak of 145 pass attempts. Its the longest string of Mannings career. But in his last two games against Seattle, Manning has thrown eight interceptions. Manning threw five picks last year in Seattles shutout victory, and three in a 2011 loss to the Seahawks.They dont have to blitz a lot to get a good pass rush and they rely on their front four to get pressure on the quarterback, and their secondary to mix up coverages, Manning said. They are a talented defence and they have a lot of good players, and they play well.BECKHAM vs. SHERMAN: Rookie Odell Beckham Jr. is coming off the best game of his rookie season with eight catches for 154 yards against the Colts. While it wont be a constant matchup, hell now be facing off against Sherman after the two-time All-Pro grabbed his first interception of the season last week.These are the games you live to play for, the moments you live to play for, to go against the best of the best, Beckham said.HEALTHY CHOICE: Seattle is about to get a first wave of players back from injuries. Center Max Unger, left tackle Russell Okung, strong safety Kam Chancellor, defensive tackle Jordan Hill and safety Jeron Johnson are expected to return Sunday. Seattle is hopeful of cornerback Byron Maxwell, linebackers Bobby Wagner and Malcolm Smith, and tight end Zach Miller returning in the coming weeks.___AP NFL websites: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Fake Vans Toy Story .com) - On the bright side, either the Minnesota Wild or Buffalo Sabres will end their losing streak on Thursday night. Fake Vans Old Skool . -- Louisville backup quarterback Reggie Bonnafon ran for two touchdowns and passed for another and the No. http://www.fakevans.com/. Still, Inter moved one point ahead of Parma in the race for fifth place and the final Europa League spot. Udinese remained 14th, 11 points above the relegation zone. Inter was beaten 2-1 by Atalanta at home on Sunday and has won only seven of 16 matches at the San Siro this season, as the squad seems to still be searching for its identity under new owner Erick Thohir and first-year manager Walter Mazzarri. Fake Vans Slip-on . Onyshko, from Minnedosa, Man., will compete in artistic gymnastics while Hanet, from Kelowna, B.C., will compete in lawn bowling as a para-athlete. "It is exciting that our Canadian athletes are starting to arrive at the Games Village," said Chantal Petitclerc, Canadas Chef de Mission. Cheap Fake Vans .com) - Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was named the National League Player of the Month for April.MONTREAL -- The Montreal Impact has agreed to terms with Argentine attacking midfielder Ignacio Piatti to become a designated player. Piatti, 29, is to join the team in August after playing for Argentine side San Lorenzo de Almagro in the Copa Libertadores. He will be Montreals second DP after striker Marco Di Vaio, who is expected to retire at the end of the season. He replaces midfielder Hernan Bernardello, a DP who left this week to join Cruz Azul in Mexico. "Were excited," said Impact sporting director Nick De Santis, who has been working on landing Piatti for more than a year. "When you go after a player in the prime of his career, who helped his team win a championship and lead them to the semifinals in the Copa Libertadores, for us it exciting.dddddddddddd" DeSantis said it was a long-term deal but declined to reveal Piattis salary or how many years the contract covers. "His strengths are his ability to score important goals, his hunger to score goals, his ability to put defences on their heels, his ability to strike the ball with the right foot or the left," said De Santis. "He gets in a good attacking positions inside the 18-yard box, and hes a two-way player." The five-foot-11 Paitti scored 30 goals in more than 160 Argentine first division matches. He has played for five clubs in Argentina as well as with St-Etienne in France in 2006 and Lecce in Italy from 2010 to 2012. ' ' '