The Seahawks carved out a little more breathing room on Friday, and they did it by moving on from Velus Jones Jr. and keeping him close.
Seattle released the running back and then brought him back on the practice squad, where a spot was open. Because Jones is a vested veteran, he didn’t have to go through waivers. That sequence leaves the Seahawks with an open spot on the 53-man roster as they head into a critical Week 9 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals.
Jones had appeared in three games and totaled 28 yards on nine carries before a hamstring injury in Seattle’s Week 7 win over the Kansas City Chiefs knocked him out for Monday’s game against the Chicago Bears. He was limited in practice on both Wednesday and Thursday, but even if he had been ready to go, the numbers were working against him.
The Seahawks already had Emanuel Wilson and George Holani in the mix, and the returns of Jadarian Price and Zach Charbonnet made Jones the likely odd man out.
Seattle’s roster math is being driven by injuries everywhere else. DT Leonard Williams (stinger), OG Quenton Nelson (knee), WR Rashid Shaheed (knee), LB Uchenna Nwosu (ankle), QB Sam Darnold (quadriceps, ribs), Brandon Pili (back), and OT Charles Cross (ankle) have all already been ruled out, which gives the team a handful of directions it could go with the newly opened roster spot.
The Seahawks elevated WR Montorie Foster Jr. against the Bears, but they also added QB Adrian Martinez and linebacker Jamie Sheriff to the practice squad on Wednesday, a move that looked like a clue about what might come next.
If Nwosu’s injury is joined by Connor O’Toole being unavailable - he’s questionable with a foot issue - Sheriff would make sense, especially with his familiarity with the team. Still, Seattle is currently set to carry only two quarterbacks, Drew Lock and Jalen Milroe, for Sunday’s game, and that could push the team toward adding a third option given Milroe’s lack of experience.
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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 🡒]