The Seahawks’ preseason loss to the Titans came with a much bigger cost than the 19-16 score.
Seattle rookie safety Bud Clark, the team’s second-round pick, broke his right ankle on the first defensive snap Sunday night and is expected to miss multiple months, head coach Mike Macdonald said after the game. Clark was hurt while trying to bring down Titans running back Tony Pollard on a nine-yard run at Nissan Stadium.
Trainers quickly put an air cast on Clark’s lower right leg before the cart took him off the field. Players from both teams gathered around as he left. ESPN reported that the 64th overall pick from TCU was out there for just that one defensive play.
Macdonald called the injury devastating and tied it to an especially brutal week for the roster.
“It’s a heartbreaker, honestly. We had three heartbreakers this week, which is tough,” Macdonald told reporters, pointing as well to wide receiver Jake Bobo’s season-ending knee injury in Friday’s joint practice and a long-term injury to offensive lineman Mason Richman on Sunday.
Clark’s college resume at TCU showed why Seattle wanted him in the first place. He finished his final season with 56 tackles, seven pass breakups and four interceptions in 11 games, and he had already shown he could fight through injuries earlier in his career before returning to help the Horned Frogs in the Alamo Bowl.
The Seahawks drafted him to add another layer to a secondary that already includes Julian Love and had been looking for versatility after Coby Bryant’s departure in free agency. The idea was for Clark to challenge Ty Okada for snaps alongside Love while also carving out work on special teams and in nickel looks.
Now that plan is on hold.
Nick Emmanwori, the hybrid safety who finished second in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting a year ago, is still working back from July ankle surgery. He has moved into individual work and is still expected to be ready for the Sept. 9 opener against the New England Patriots, but Seattle’s safety room is suddenly a lot thinner than it looked before camp.
There is still experience in the group. Love is entering his eighth NFL season and remains a steady starter.
Okada has already shown he can handle extended reps. Rodney Thomas II, D’Anthony Bell and A.J.
Finley give the Seahawks more bodies to work with.
Even so, Clark’s injury stings because of what he was supposed to bring: a young playmaker with ball skills that fit what Macdonald wants on defense. The coach said the entire team came onto the field to support him, a telling scene after the injury.
The game itself faded into the background. Seattle sat its starters after the joint practices, and the backups raced out to a 16-3 first-quarter lead behind Drew Lock and a long touchdown run before Tennessee clawed back. But the night belonged to the rookie safety who left on a cart with his right leg in an air cast.
General manager John Schneider built the roster with this kind of depth in mind, but a weekend that brought three major injuries still puts that depth to the test. Clark’s absence now pushes Seattle to take a hard look at its remaining safeties over the final preseason week and into September.
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