Leonard Williams still got on the field Sunday, but the Seahawks defensive tackle didn’t look fully right.
Williams was active for Seattle’s 32-29 loss to the San Francisco 49ers at Lumen Field just days after an ankle injury scare in the Seahawks’ 30-23 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. The injury had clearly been enough of a concern to raise questions before kickoff, and Williams later admitted he felt it right away.
As he put it, he "heard a little bit of crunchiness" while he was walking off the field during the Chargers game.
"I think at first, just when it first happens and you're out there on the field, the adrenaline's pumping and you hear a little bit of crunchiness or something like that, you always think worst-case scenario. But then once you calm down, go in the training room and they start doing tests on you, you start realizing it's not as bad as you thought," Williams said.
Even with that reassurance, his impact against San Francisco was limited. Williams finished with one assisted tackle and a quarterback hit on Brock Purdy, a quieter stat line than the Seahawks were likely hoping for from one of their interior disruptors.
The bigger concern now is timing. After trying to answer the bell against the 49ers, Williams may have to do it again on short rest, with Seattle heading to Denver for Thursday Night Football. That’s not a friendly assignment for a player dealing with an ankle issue, especially with the Broncos’ interior offensive line presenting one of the league’s tougher tests.
Williams went down against Los Angeles on a goal-line play, with the injury believed to be a low ankle sprain. The team didn’t give out many details publicly, but a Grade 1 sprain usually takes at least a week and can stretch to a month depending on the case. That timeline makes his quick return look like a real challenge.
If Williams can’t go, or even if he does but isn’t at full strength, Mike Macdonald has some ways to adjust. The Seahawks head coach and defensive play-caller could lean on disguised blitz looks to help make up for limited mobility up front, and that might be a smart move anyway with Broncos quarterback Bo Nix struggling under heavy pressure.
Another option is to feature Byron Murphy II next to Jarran Reed as the main interior pass-rushing combination. Murphy was all over Purdy on Sunday, logging two sacks, three TFLs, and three quarterback hits.
However Macdonald chooses to handle it, Seattle has some answers available. The bigger question is which version of Leonard Williams the Seahawks will have, if he’s out there at all, when they reach the Mile High City.
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