Seattle’s offensive line is getting reshuffled again, and the quarterback plan is now official: Drew Lock will start against Arizona while Sam Darnold sits out with a quadriceps injury.
The Seahawks also revealed Friday that guard Quenton Nelson will need a minor knee procedure and is considered week-to-week. Head coach Mike Macdonald said the team is not planning to place Nelson on injured reserve.
“Quenton is going to be out,” Macdonald said in the Seahawks’ official injury update. “We’re going to do a minor procedure. He’s week-to-week at this point, we’re not going to put him on IR, so we’ll go from there.”
Macdonald said Nelson was already dealing with a knee problem when he arrived from Indianapolis, and the issue worsened after the trade. Seattle had the knee re-imaged and decided to handle it now, though Macdonald did not specify the procedure beyond calling it minor or offer a return date.
With Nelson unavailable, the Seahawks are moving Grey Zabel back to left guard and putting Anthony Bradford back into the starting lineup at right guard. Macdonald said the shift puts both linemen back where they’ve already logged practice and game reps.
Darnold had been ruled out earlier in the week because of the quad injury, and Macdonald confirmed Friday that Lock gets the start despite an elbow issue that limited his practice time. Jalen Milroe also took extra reps in case he’s needed.
Seattle’s injury list grew from there. The team ruled out left tackle Charles Cross (ankle), receiver Rashid Shaheed (knee), defensive tackle Leonard Williams (stinger), outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (ankle) and nose tackle Brandon Pili (back). Outside linebacker Connor O’Toole is questionable with a foot injury.
Macdonald said Lock’s reduced workload was simply precautionary, and the team did not provide any further medical detail or timeline.
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Seahawks Head Into Arizona With Two Problems Fans Can't Ignore
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Defensively, the bigger concern may be what happens once opponents get close. Seattle has still posted strong overall defensive rankings, but the red-zone numbers have been a problem, with opponents scoring touchdowns on 83% of their chances there, the worst rate in the league. Against the Cardinals, that kind of bend-but-don't-break approach is going to be tested again, and the Seahawks need a cleaner answer if they want to leave Arizona with more than another reminder of what is not working. [Read more 🡒]