The Seahawks already face a difficult task Thursday night when they host the 49ers in the final of three Thanksgiving Day games. That challenge is exacerbated by the fact that Seattle is dealing with multiple injuries to key players, with quarterback Geno Smith and running back Kenneth Walker both carrying injury designations into the game.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Smith hasn’t been able to put his bruised elbow through much testing in the short week. Smith used Wednesday’s practice to figure out how much he could throw in order to set expectations about his availability. Later that afternoon, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported that “all indications have (Smith) tracking to play” against the rival 49ers Thursday night.
Meanwhile, head coach Pete Carroll told reporters that Walker had a “oblique strain that was legit,” according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. According to Carroll’s update, Walker is in danger of missing some time, but Schefter added that the team does not consider him an injured reserve candidate. Walker would have missed a week on regular rest, but with a short week, Walker would be extremely unlikely to play Thursday, hence his questionable game status.
Along with Smith and Walker, the Seahawks will be without rookie safety and special teams standout Jerrick Reed II, who reportedly tore his ACL and will miss the rest of the season, per Schefter. The sixth-round pick from New Mexico hasn’t seen much action on defense this year, but he’s third on the team in special teams tackles.
Here are some additional injury rumors from around the league:
The Colts placed second-year tight end Jelani Woods on injured reserve with a hamstring injury just before the start of the season to make room on the roster for wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie. At that point, it was assumed that Woods would miss at least the first four games of the season, but he has yet to make his 2023 debut. Woods is eligible for IR activation, but a setback in his rehabilitation with his opposite hamstring has prevented him from returning for the time being, according to Joel A. Erickson of FOX59/CBS4. Shane Steichen, the team’s head coach, stated that he “doesn’t know” if it will be a season-ending setback.
The Browns have one of the best defenses in the league this year, but their secondary is limping into Week 12 with all four starters questionable as of Wednesday. Cornerback Denzel Ward, safeties Grant Delpit and Juan Thornhill, and cornerback Greg Newsome II all have a good chance of playing on Sunday, but cornerback Denzel Ward is dealing with a shoulder injury that may keep him out of this weekend’s game and possibly beyond, according to Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com. The team isn’t ready to rule Ward out just yet, but they are preparing for the possibility that he will be out for several games.
This season, we’ve seen multiple players miss time due to high-ankle sprains. According to Mike Reiss of ESPN, Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown sought a second opinion on his ankle injury on Tuesday and was diagnosed with high- and low-ankle sprains, as well as an MCL sprain. Players have missed time with less, but Brown plans to play through his ankle and knee injuries, according to reports.
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