RENTON -- Terrell Owens is expected to play for the Seahawks on Saturday in Denver, his debut for the team.

"I'm not going to tell you how many plays it will be," coach Pete Carroll said. "We'll see how it goes, but he's going to play pretty early in the game."

Owens was signed by Seattle on Aug. 6, but didn't play in the exhibition opener because Carroll said it was unfair to ask a guy who had been out of the NFL a year to play a game only three days after he started practicing with the team.

But this week?

"He's ready to go," Carroll said. "He had two good weeks of work, and he came in in great shape so he's ready to go."

So add Owens to a compelling mix of receivers on this team. Doug Baldwin and Ricardo Lockette returned to practice this week after sitting out last week's game.

Golden Tate sat out practice Wednesday, but returned to the field Thursday and is expected to play Saturday. Ben Obomanu sat out Thursday's practice with a pinched nerve in his neck, but is also expected to be available in Denver.

Owens is not listed among the first three tiers of the Seahawks' depth chart on the team's Web site, but don't read too much into that.

Owens is listed behind the split ends on that depth chart, but he's actually playing flanker.

As for how things are shaping up in the competition at wide receiver?

"We're still in the midst of this thing," Carroll said. "I like our group a lot, and we've become even more competitive and more experienced with the guys that will come in to add to it. We're just going to wait. We don't have to do anything right now. We just keep giving these guys turns in practice and get familiar and comfortable with them and also see them in the games, and add it all up together at the end. It's a really good position group for us right now."