Seahawks QB Geno Smith, S Jamal Adams Listed Questionable to Play vs. Eagles
After missing practice time this week leading up to a pivotal Monday night battle with the Philadelphia Eagles, the status of quarterback Geno Smith and safety Jamal Adams remains up in the air for the Seattle Seahawks.
Smith, who sat out last Sunday's loss to San Francisco with a groin injury, has been a limited participant in practice so far this week and received a questionable designation on Saturday. While he plans to "push to play" and an extra day of rest has helped him recover from the injury, the quarterback was non-committal on whether he expected to play speaking with reporters prior to Friday's practice.
“It’s definitely helping," Smith said. "I’m getting better every single day, been working around the clock just to try and get my body as healthy as possible to go out there and being able to play.”
As for Adams, the veteran safety continues to deal with a sore knee resulting from a torn quad tendon suffered last season. The Seahawks have been cautious with his workload during the practice week and he sat out on Thursday and Friday, but the team still listed him as questionable with it remaining unknown whether he participated in Saturday's session.
Chatting with reporters on Thursday, coach Pete Carroll lauded Adams for how quickly he returned from a serious injury and indicated his rehab and conditioning will continue into next season.
“I think he has done an extraordinary job of battling, because there was a time in the offseason when he couldn’t walk right," Carroll commented. "He kept working his way through it and just climbing back to normal. It’s been a real battle. They can’t walk normal for months, and he made it back. I think he deserves all the credit in the world of fighting through it and competing his tail off. He’ll continue to get better."
After sitting out a loss to the 49ers, the Seahawks are holding out hope Geno Smith feels good enough to play against the Eagles on Monday night.
© Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
If Smith and/or Adams aren't able to play, Seattle has been preparing quarterback Drew Lock to make a second consecutive start during the practice week and veteran Julian Love would stay in the starting lineup alongside Quandre Diggs in the secondary. Journeyman quarterback Sean Mannion likely will be elevated from the practice squad for the second straight week as an insurance policy.
Along with Smith and Adams, the Seahawks also listed rookie cornerback Devon Witherspoon, receiver Dee Eskridge, and fullback/linebacker Nick Bellore as questionable for Monday's prime time contest.
Exiting in the first quarter of Seattle's defeat in Santa Clara with a hip injury, Witherspoon didn't practice on Thursday or Friday. But earlier in the week, Carroll insinuated that the team had optimism about him being ready to go by the weekend and whether or not he practices on Saturday could be telling about his playing status against Philadelphia.
As for Eskridge, the third-year receiver has missed the past two games dealing with a rib injury and after practicing in limited fashion on Thursday, he sat out on Friday. Whether or not he's healthy enough to play, the Seahawks could opt to roll with Dareke Young as the fifth receiver instead as they did a week ago.
Nursing a knee injury, demonstrating his humorous side once again, Bellore told reporters on Friday that he would "be fine" and ready to play on Monday night.
“I’m just an old guy. They’ve got to get me a rascal to go around the building I think.”
