Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny Nearing Return From Knee Surgery

An already deep Seattle backfield could have more talent coming with the impending return of Penny, who remains hopeful he will be able to hit the practice field after the team's Week 6 bye.

Though it remains unclear if he will be activated from the PUP list when eligible after the team's Week 6 bye, the Seahawks may have backfield reinforcements coming soon in the form of Rashaad Penny.

According to coach Pete Carroll, who spent time with Penny today while he was testing in the weight room, the third-year running back has made substantial strides in his recovery from offseason knee reconstructive surgery. Per Carroll, his left quadricep measured just 1/2 a centimeter less than his right quadricep, a "remarkable" sign of his progress to this stage.

Despite the positive update, Carroll reaffirmed Seattle won't push the issue bringing Penny back too quickly. With 12 games remaining on the schedule and four quality backs led by Chris Carson on the roster currently, there's no reason to expedite his return and the team can afford to wait until he's 100 percent healthy.

"He's working really hard, he's running hard," Carroll said on Monday. "I can't tell you that two weeks from now, maybe three weeks from now that he's be ready to go. I don't know that, but what I have told you is we're not going to rush him. We're gonna make sure he's back and he's really fully returned to full strength and full speed and all that."

Penny originally tore his left ACL in a Week 14 loss to the Rams last December. Prior to the injury, the ex-San Diego State star was in the midst of his finest stretch as a Seahawk, rushing for a career-best 129 yards in a win over the Eagles and following up with 107 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns in a win over the Vikings the next week.

Landing on injured reserve, Penny finished the season with 379 rushing yards and three touchdowns, averaging 5.7 yards per carry and adding eight receptions for 83 yards as a receiver out of the backfield.

Whenever Penny does return to the field, Seattle will have some interesting choices to make. Currently behind Carson, the team has another reliable veteran in Carlos Hyde, a promising rookie in DeeJay Dallas, and third-down change of pace back Travis Homer on the depth chart.

Though an injury could certainly happen between now and when Penny is activated, if all four players are healthy, the Seahawks may have to cut one of their younger backs to create room for him. It's also possible they could squeeze all five backs onto the 53-man roster at the expense of another position.

Until the organization is comfortable with Penny being ready to play again, however, the team won't have to tackle such a decision. Once that time does come, Seattle will welcome to the electric ball carrier back with open arms with hopes he can pick up where he left off prior to suffering his injury and add another dimension to their rushing attack.