Seahawks, Rams Facing Major Injury Questions Heading Into Wild Card Grudge Match

As both NFC West rivals begin ramping up preparation for a Wild Card round grudge match at Lumen Field, the Seahawks and Rams each have several injury concerns to monitor in coming days.

Most notably for Los Angeles, starting quarterback Jared Goff underwent thumb surgery last week after suffering a fracture in a Week 16 loss to Seattle and did not play in the season finale. While he has yet to be ruled out to play on Saturday, all signs continue to point to backup John Wolford making his second straight start on the biggest of stages.

Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Goff was able to throw some passes on Sunday prior to the Rams 18-8 victory over the Cardinals. Still, with early forecasts in the Pacific Northwest expected to be below 50 degrees with rainy conditions, it could be a major challenge for him to play just two weeks after his operation.

While the Rams wait and see whether or not Goff can give it a shot this weekend, the Seahawks have their own concerning injuries to monitor on the defensive side of the ball. Though they improved to 12-4 with a victory over the 49ers, it proved to be a costly one with starting safety Jamal Adams and defensive tackle Jarran Reed exiting with shoulder and oblique injuries respectively.

Adams injured his left shoulder midway through the fourth quarter while trying to rush quarterback C.J. Beathard as a blitzer on a 3rd and 6 situation. Running back Jerrick McKinnon collided with his shoulder while blocking him and the defender quickly made his way to the sidelines to be evaluated in the blue medical tent.

After exiting the tent, Adams was seen on the television broadcast throwing his helmet into the ground and remained on the bench with a dismayed look on his face, suggesting the injury was a significant one. Ryan Neal replaced him in the lineup for the rest of the contest.

Following the game, coach Pete Carroll wasn't able to provide any specifics on Adams' injury, though he did indicate the medical staff believed he should have a chance to play next weekend. Nothing had changed when asked for an update on his Monday morning radio show on ESPN 710 Seattle and for now, his status remains day to day.

“I haven’t seen him today,” Carroll said. “He’s real disappointed. He wants to play and he wants to get out there. He hasn't been in the playoffs and he wants to be a part of it and all that, so it kind of crushed him."

Per Carroll, Adams wanted to go back into Sunday's game, but the team decided against it with the Packers and Saints both winning and the chance of earning the No. 1 overall seed out of the picture.

“He handled it and wanted to go back in and we had to take his helmet away and all that on the sidelines because he wanted to fight with his guys,” Carroll remarked. “So we’ll see what happens. I can’t tell you right now, I don’t know.”

As for Reed, the veteran defender suffered an oblique strain early in Sunday's contest and played through it for a while before exiting in the third quarter. He wound up going to the locker room and did not return. On Monday, Carroll said he was "pretty sore" and his status remains up in the air moving forward.

“He’s had this injury before," Carroll said. "We don’t know how difficult it will be to come back, I don’t know that, but he was pretty uncomfortable last night.”

While Neal would replace Adams if he can't play, losing Reed might actually be a bigger blow for the Seahawks from a depth perspective. The team currently has only three defensive tackles on the roster with Reed and recently released Damon Harrison, who joined the Packers on waivers.

If there's a silver lining, Seattle's offensive line should be at full strength just in time to face Aaron Donald and one of the NFL's best defensive lines. Guard Mike Iupati is expected to be ready to play after missing the past two games with a neck stinger, while right tackle Brandon Shell should be activated from the COVID-19/reserve list after having several days of negative tests.

"This will be fun to have all those guys back together," Carroll stated. "But if anyone has to come out, we’re okay... We’re very fortunate that we’re going to be back on track and full [strength].”