American Football: Backup QB leads Seahawks to victory

The Seattle Seahawks look good at quarterback.

Trent Dilfer completed 17 of 20 passes for 211 yards and two first-half touchdowns and Seneca Wallace led a late drive for the winning field goal as the Seahawks beat the Minnesota Vikings 23-21 on Thursday night.

Josh Brown kicked a 28-yarder with no time remaining after Wallace led a nine-play, 68-yard drive in the final 2:57. Brown also kicked a 41-yard field goal with 5:21 to play and hit a 39-yard try early in the second half.

Minnesota's Larry Ned, playing for injured running back Michael Bennett, scored on a 1-yard run and caught a 10-yard scoring pass from Shaun Hill as the Vikings erased a 10-point deficit in the third period, taking a 21-17 lead.

Wallace was shaky earlier in the half but he looked cool when Seattle took possession on its 22 just under the 3-minute mark.

Minnesota's Rod Davis was penalized 15 yards for a personal foul after a helmet-to-helmet hit on a 7-yard catch by Antoine Burns with 1:57 on the clock. The penalty moved the ball to the Vikings' 44.

Four plays later, a 16-yard run by Kerry Carter put the Seahawks at the 13 and he followed with a three-yard run up the middle. Wallace ran the clock down to three seconds, then called timeout for the kick.

With starter Matt Hasselbeck watching from the sideline all night, Dilfer and Wallace made the Seahawks look deep at quarterback.

Dilfer played only the first half but was sharp. He spread his passes among seven receivers. One of his few mistakes came on the opening drive, when he forced a pass under pressure right into the arms of Vikings defensive tackle Steve Martin.

It was the final preseason game for both teams, and neither coach was willing to risk an injury to a star.

Shaun Alexander joined Hasselbeck on Seattle's sideline while Minnesota receiver Randy Moss passed the whole game on the bench, draped in a purple warmup jacket with a towel over his head.

Daunte Culpepper played only one series but looked ready for the regular season. He completed all five throws for 92 yards on Minnesota's opening drive, capping it with a 22-yard TD pass to wide open Jermaine Wiggins to put the Vikings up 7-0.

Grant Wistrom, who joined Seattle as a free agent, played his first game in a Seahawks uniform and drew big cheers when he helped linebacker Isaiah Kacyvenski drop Moore for no gain on Minnesota's second play.

Wistrom has been nursing plantar fasciitis in his right foot.

The Seahawks tied it 7-7 when Dilfer threw a 5-yard TD pass to Jason Willis with 2:42 left before halftime. Dilfer made it 14-7 just before the break with a 7-yard TD strike to Burns, who had a 72-yard gain on the previous play.