Tyler Lockett, Ryan Neal Among 5 Seahawks Questionable to Play vs. Rams
With a Wild Card berth potentially hanging in the balance, while no players have been ruled out to face the Rams, the Seattle Seahawks have several notable starters listed as questionable to suit up in their Week 18 season finale.
Headlining the group of players, Tyler Lockett didn't practice on Wednesday and Thursday due to a shin contusion suffered in last week's win over the Jets. But per coach Pete Carroll, the star receiver had a solid practice as a limited participant on Friday and confirmed he should be ready to play this weekend.
"He looked good," Carroll said of Lockett. "Had a good day of work, as did DK (Metcalf)."
Away from Lockett, Seattle listed starting left guard and rotational reserve Phil Haynes as questionable with ankle injuries. Lewis didn't miss any snaps last week, but emerged on the injury report on Thursday as a limited participant, while Haynes exited Sunday's win with a high ankle sprain and has been held out of practice all week.
Per Carroll, Lewis turned his ankle in practice, but the third-year veteran believes he will be able to make a quick recovery and start on Sunday. As for Haynes, he's a game time decision due to the nature of his injury, which can take multiple weeks to recover from depending on severity.
"Anybody that has a high ankle sprain, you don't know the degree of it until you really start to push it," Carroll commented. "So we've really taken it easy on him... We'll see what happens and keep our fingers crossed."
While Haynes may have a chance to pull off a surprisingly speedy recovery and not miss the season finale, running back Travis Homer received a doubtful designation with a high ankle sprain of his own . Based on Carroll's remarks, he's set to miss his second straight game due to the injury, admitting it's a higher degree sprain than the one Haynes suffered last week.
In a positive development along the offensive line, the Seahawks will welcome back rookie right tackle Abraham Lucas, who missed last week's game with a patellar tendon injury in his knee. Benefiting immensely from a week off, Carroll indicated he had a great week of practice and he didn't receive an injury designation after being limited on Wednesday and Thursday.
"He bounced right back," Carroll stated. "With all the reps and plays that he's had, just like with Charles [Cross] on the other side, you could see that having to stay out a week helped him coming back. It's a good sign."
Back in action in the trenches, Lucas will get to block for fellow rookie running back Ken Walker III, who returned as a full participant in Friday's practice after sitting out Wednesday and Thursday and didn't receive an injury designation. The dynamic runner will now have a chance to make history as the second player in franchise history to hit 1,000 rushing yards in his rookie season.
Defensively, while the player has made progress, Carroll wasn't as optimistic about safety Ryan Neal's chances of returning after missing the past two games with a knee injury. While he's listed as questionable and could play if he makes a rapid turnaround in the next couple of days, he didn't practice at all this week, making his status murky at best leading into Sunday.
"It's going to have to be a big change [for him to play] on game day," Carroll admitted.
If Neal isn't able to play, Jonathan Abram and Teez Tabor will once again take the reins at strong safety with both players likely seeing snaps on the field together in dime packages with six defensive backs on the field.
Up front, Quinton Jefferson missed practice on Wednesday and Friday with an illness that has bothered him all week. But despite being sent home on Friday, Carroll expects the veteran defensive tackle will rebound in time to face the Rams.
In even better news, linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (foot) and defensive tackle Poona Ford (calf) weren't listed on the final injury report after missing practice time this week. Both players should be ready to start as Seattle pursues a ninth win and the NFC's final playoff spot.
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