He was better.

"He looked quick and looked flexible," coach Pete Carroll said. "For his first time playing in five weeks he played well."

Gallery was the player that Seattle signed to be the veteran anchor on its offensive line, but he was underwhelming in the exhibition season. Turns out there was a reason.

An abdominal injury had been bothering him since the second week of training camp way back in August.

"It was something that I was just dealing with," he said.

He missed two weeks with a sprained knee, came back to play at Pittsburgh in Week 2, and that's when the injury worsened past the point of playing through it.

"I knew I had to get it fixed," he said.

He underwent surgery to repair the injury, which is described as a sports hernia. The fact Gallery feels better was evident in Cleveland.

"Obviously, once I got it taken care of, it has been a lot better," Gallery said.