Seahawks Counting on Jadeveon Clowney to Play Against Vikings

Returning to practice in preparation for a pivotal upcoming prime time contest against the Vikings, the Seahawks were without defensive end Jadeveon Clowney on Wednesday but remain hopeful he’ll be able to play next Monday.

Coach Pete Carroll didn’t have much new information to pass along to reporters prior to Wednesday’s session, but after sitting out Sunday’s win over the Eagles, the Seahawks are keeping their fingers crossed Clowney will resume practicing later this week and be back in the lineup.

“We’re counting on him getting back,” Carroll said. “We are, we’re counting on him getting back, but he’s still got to make it. That’s a little twinge of optimism there again. He feels good about it and he wants to go. He’s going to try and make it.”

Clowney didn’t practice at all last week due to a hip injury and traveled to Philadelphia to visit with renowned specialist Dr. William Myers. He received treatment for what Carroll described on Monday as a “sports hernia-related issue” and now the team has to see how he responds as the week progresses.

In addition to Clowney, injured defensive tackle Jarran Reed also has his sights set on suiting up against Minnesota. The fourth-year defender reaggravated a sprained ankle in the second quarter on Sunday and didn’t return in the second half, leaving his status in doubt for Week 13.

However, according to Carroll, Reed participated in Seattle’s walk through on Wednesday and seems hellbent on doing whatever it takes to return to the field quickly.

“He’s determined to practice and to play in the week at the end of the week. He was out at walk through doing his stuff today, so we’ll see. It’s going to be day to day for us to figure it out. We won’t know until probably game time.”

In other injury news, Luke Willson is working feverishly to bounce back from a hamstring injury after missing Sunday’s game. Carroll indicated the veteran tight end is “trying to pull it off” and didn’t indicate whether or not he’d practice on Wednesday.

“He’s as aggressively approaching it as you can do it. He’s going to try to prove that he can play this week, so we’ll see how that goes. Trainers are trying to hold him back from going too far too soon. That’s how Luke does it. Luke has been remarkable over the years. I wouldn’t count him out.”

While Carroll didn’t discount Willson’s odds of returning, he sounded far less optimistic about fullback Nick Bellore. The special teams ace exited Sunday’s game with a significant quad injury and isn’t ready to return to practice.

When asked about a potential replacement for Bellore, Carroll said the team has an option in mind but declined to give specifics, saying, “We’ll wait and see on that one. Why would we tell them now?”