"Every Thanksgiving growing up we'd get together as a family and eat a meal and watch Thanksgiving Day games," the Seahawks rookie tight end said, unable to hold back a smile.

This year, the experience will be really special, because Carlson and his Seahawks teammates will play the Dallas Cowboys at Texas Stadium in one of the traditional Thanksgiving Day games.

It will be a first for Carlson, and the last for Texas Stadium - the Cowboys will move into a new venue next season.

Just as Carlson has been very good for the Seahawks' lean passing game this season, Thanksgiving games at Texas Stadium have helped the Cowboys fatten up their hefty lore.

The Cowboys are 25-14-1 in Thanksgiving Day games, a series that goes back to 1966. They have beaten 16 different opponents - including the Seahawks, 51-7 in 1980. They have lost to eight different teams - including the Seahawks, 31-14 in 1986.

Carlson doesn't remember either of those games, because he wasn't born until 1984. But he will remember this one.

"I'm really excited," he said. "Watching that game was good enough; now I get to take part."

With the excitement comes the experience of playing two games in five days. The Seahawks also did this in the preseason, when they had a Monday game in San Diego and then played Friday against Oakland at Qwest Field.

Asked about any carryover in preparation - mentally, as well as physically - coach Mike Holmgren offered, "It seems so long ago. I don't think so."

The coaching staff began its cram session Monday by putting together the game plan, while the players were off. They will gather Tuesday for their only full day of practice and preparation before traveling Wednesday.

"My charge to them, between now and Tuesday when I see them, is to get off their feet and try to recover," Holmgren said after Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Washington Redskins - one that dropped the Seahawks to 2-9 and clinched their first losing season since 2002.

The Seahawks will face more than tradition at Texas Stadium. They'll be playing a Cowboys team that is 7-4 and needs to continue winning if it is to secure a wild-card playoff spot.

Offensively, the Cowboys will come at them with a huge offensive line featuring left tackle Flozell Adams (6 feet 7, 340), center Andre Gurode (6-4, 318), right guard Leonard Davis (6-6, 354) and right tackle Marc Colombo (6-8, 318). Adams, Davis and Gurode were among the 13 Cowboys voted to the Pro Bowl last season. Left guard Kyle Kosier, the runt of the group at 296 pounds, will miss the game because of a foot injury.

An even bigger story is the return of quarterback Tony Romo after missing three games because of a broken pinkie on his throwing hand. The offense struggled in his absence, failing to score more than 14 points. But with Romo back, that total was enough to beat the Redskins two weeks ago, and then they hung up 35 on the 49ers on Sunday - when explosive wide receiver Terrell Owens gained 213 yards on seven receptions.

Defensively, it seems everything starts with Pro Bowl linebacker DeMarcus Ware, who already has 12 sacks.

That's a lot to prepare for in one week. Given one day, the challenge is obvious. But it doesn't diminish the excitement.

"It's definitely something different," second-year Seahawks defensive tackle Brandon Mebane said. "I used to watch this game all the time growing up. I never imagined it might come to me someday."

HAWK TALK: The Seahawks' game against the New England Patriots at Qwest Field on Dec. 7, originally scheduled for a 5:15 p.m. kickoff, will now start at 1:05 p.m. NBC will televise the Redskins' game against Baltimore at 5:15. ... Dallas is 3-0 in the games Kosier has started this season, 4-4 in the games he's missed. Cory Procter will replace him, as he did in the eight games Kosier was out. ... The Cowboys also will be without reserve cornerback Mike Jenkins, who has a hamstring injury.\

HAWKS AT Cowboys

WHEN/WHERE: Thursday, 1:15 p.m., Texas Stadium

TV/RADIO: KCPQ/13; KIRO-AM/710

\ UP NEXT: DALLAS Cowboys

WHEN/WHERE: Thursday, 1:15 p.m., Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Cowboys' RECORD: 7-4, after Sunday's 35-22 win over the San Francisco 49ers

WHERE THEY RANK: No. 10 on offense (16th rushing, ninth passing); No. 10 on defense (10th rushing, 11th passing)

SERIES: Cowboys lead 6-4, including a 3-2 record in Texas

STAR POWER: Tony Romo. If you need any more proof that this team goes as Romo goes, check out what the Cowboys accomplished while their Pro Bowl QB was out for three games with a fractured pinkie on his throwing hand: 1-2, and they scored 14, 13 and 14 points in those games. Since his return, the Cowboys have beaten the Redskins and 49ers. Then there's the way Romo's star shines at home. In his past four games at Texas Stadium, Romo has passed for 12 touchdowns and three interceptions, while completing 62 percent of his passes for an average of 282 yards.

UNSUNG HERO: Jay Ratliff. On a team that had 13 Pro Bowl players last season, there is Ratliff - a former seventh-round draft choice who is flourishing as the nose tackle. He has six sacks and anchors a three-man line that has been pivotal in the defense allowing only 118 rushing yards the past two games - which included holding the 49ers' Frank Gore to a season-low 26 yards on 14 carries Sunday and the Redskins' Clinton Portis to 68 yards on 15 carries the week before (the same Portis who had 143 yards Sunday against Seattle).

ON THE SPOT: Terrell Owens. The Cowboys' big-play wide receiver rants, and vents, and stalks the sideline when things aren't going his way. But when they are, which was the case against the 49ers on Sunday, he goes out and catches seven passes for 213 yards. This after combining for 12 catches and one TD in the three games Romo was sidelined.

BURNING QUESTION: When will Roy Williams play up to expectations? Not Roy L. Williams, the five-time Pro Bowl safety who is out with a broken arm. This is Roy E. Williams, the receiver. The one who has nine catches in five games for the Cowboys since they gave up three draft choices to acquire him from the Detroit Lions last month and gave him a five-year, $45 million contract extension.

FAMILIAR FACES: Free safety Ken Hamlin played for the Seahawks (2003-06), while backup nose tackle Tank Johnson and backup wide receiver Isaiah Stanback played at the University of Washington. Offensive line coach Hudson Houck coached for the Seahawks (1992).

THE LAST WORD: "We put ourselves in position to make a run. The time is now. We've kind of gotten ourselves in a spot where we're in a hunt for a playoff spot. It'll be exciting. You never know what's going to happen." - Romo

- Clare Farnsworth

P-I reporter Clare Farnsworth can be reached at 206-448-8016 or clarefarnsworth@seattlepi.com Read his Seahawks blog at blog.seattlepi.com/Football.