The Seahawks won’t have Quenton Nelson back this weekend, and there’s at least a chance the left guard’s return could wait until after the bye.
Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald said Monday morning on Seattle Sports’ weekly Mike Macdonald Show on Brock and Salk that Nelson will miss a second straight game when the Seahawks visit the Raiders in Las Vegas. Nelson sat out Sunday’s win over the Arizona Cardinals after the team revealed last week that he was dealing with a knee issue just one game into his Seattle run.
Macdonald also made clear that Seattle is not planning to place Nelson on injured reserve, which would have sidelined him for at least four games. Asked whether Nelson might be back for the Seahawks’ Nov. 29 road game against the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers, Macdonald said that “it’s possible.”
The coach also tried to put a finer point on the procedure Nelson is set to undergo.
“It’s not really a surgery, it’s more of a procedure,” Macdonald said. “You know, semantics.”
Last Friday, Macdonald had already described it as a “minor” knee procedure when speaking with reporters. That lines up with what ESPN and NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported on social media, saying the goal was to “clean out some cartilage in his knee, sources say, as fragments had been causing an issue lately.”
Nelson, 30, is a ninth-year NFL veteran and a three-time All-Pro. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first eight seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and had missed only four regular season games before the trade to Seattle, all of them in 2021.
The Seahawks paid a third-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft and a fifth-round pick in the 2028 draft to land Nelson from Indianapolis. He played every one of Seattle’s 63 offensive snaps in his debut Nov. 2, a 34-17 loss to the Chicago Bears.
Nelson is scheduled to become a free agent after this season, but Seattle has made a habit of swinging big on in-season additions with expiring contracts and then working out long-term extensions later on.
In Other News...
Seahawks Suddenly Have A Week 10 Quarterback Problem Again
Drew Lock took another hit to Seattles quarterback depth chart on Sunday, leaving the game against Arizona with a new injury in his right hip area and still managing to stay on the field. The Seahawks now have to sort through the fallout of that issue while also waiting on a separate evaluation for an oblique injury, a reminder that the position has become a moving target again just as the season enters another critical stretch.
Mike Macdonald said Locks status is uncertain, and the timing is especially awkward because Sam Darnold is also dealing with quad and rib injuries and is considered week-to-week. For a team that has already spent too much time managing quarterback availability, Week 10 suddenly looks like another test of how much flexibility Seattle really has if both passers are limited. [Read more 🡒]
Drew Lock Just Gave Seahawks Fans A Real QB Debate
The Seahawks got through Week 9 with a 17-3 win over the Cardinals even while missing Leonard Williams and Uchenna Nwosu on defense, and the more interesting question afterward was what Drew Lock did at quarterback. Starting in place of Sam Darnold, Lock played through injuries, protected the ball and helped Seattle stay in control of a game that never really tilted back Arizonas way. Dante Fowler Jr. chipped in with key plays on the other side of the ball, and AJ Barner added a touchdown to round out a sturdy team effort.
What makes the conversation linger is how clean Lock looked in a spot where the Seahawks have had to manage uncertainty. Darnold did not play, and his season has already been defined by turnovers, so a mistake-free outing from Lock naturally invites a bigger look at the position. Seattle does not have to make a sweeping decision off one game, but after a win like this, the quarterback picture feels a lot less settled than it did a week ago. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Face A Trade Deadline Dilemma That Could Shape This Season
The Seahawks are heading into the NFL trade deadline with a familiar kind of front-office tension: whether to chase help now or protect the draft capital that keeps the roster stocked for later. General manager John Schneider has been weighing a range of possibilities, from edge rushers Khalil Mack and Jadeveon Clowney to running back Tony Pollard and tight end Dallas Goedert, as Seattle looks for ways to strengthen a team that wants to stay in the mix without mortgaging too much of its future.
Seattle has already made one notable move by bringing in left guard Quenton Nelson, though he is currently injured, which only adds to the urgency and the uncertainty around what comes next. The Seahawks want immediate impact, but they are also wary of paying a premium for short-term rentals, so the deadline could come down to how far Schneider is willing to go to help this season without emptying the cupboard for the next one. [Read more 🡒]