6:41 PM
Chris Carson will have season-ending neck surgery and will return in 2022.
The news was announced by Pete Carroll. He is confident that the leading scorer in each of the previous three seasons will play next year.
"We went as long as we could and he worked as hard as he could at it, but we couldn't get it to happen, so we turned around and did something else," he said. We'll be looking forward to him getting all that taken care of and being ready for a big year next year.
It's another blow to the 3-6 Seahawks. The future of Carson's return this year has been in question for a while, and earlier in the week, Pete said that his season could be over when he hadn't made the progress Seattle had hoped for.
Alex Collins has been the starter for Seattle since Week 5.
Collins was listed on the injury report again this week but is ready to play against the Cards. Strong safety Jamal Adams and defensive back D.J. Reed are questionable for the game.
After Seattle's win over San Francisco in Week 4, Carson's neck began to bother him. He was placed on injured reserve and was supposed to return to practice last week. He did not practice on Friday. He did not practice this week.
"We had time, so we took as much time as we could to rest him and then we built him up to bring him back, and then when he came back to practice the first day, it wasn't quite right", he said Friday. He practiced again the next day and it didn't relent. It's been very uncomfortable for him. It has been uncomfortable for him.
The injury to Carson was a small spot in one of his vertebrae that was bothering the nerve. The neck injuries that ended the careers of Kam Chancellor and Cliff Avril are different. He said yes when asked if that gives him hope that he will return.
It's not clear how long the neck injury has been an issue. It wasn't a problem for him in previous years, but he initially described it as an old condition.
He puts a lot of weight on his shoulders and it's right up there. It could have come from anywhere. It is a wear-and-tear type of thing. He hasn't had any signs of it in the past.
It would have been a consideration for surgery to be done this year if he had been able to continue playing, but now that he is, it gives him a head start on his rehabilitation.
After testing free agency and returning to Seattle on a two-year, $10.450 million deal, Carson is under contract through 2022. It included an artificial year in 2023 that voids.
"That's the whole reason that we're doing it now, and I'm pretty sure that we'll get him back in 2022," he said. He's for it. We couldn't shake it. It was like trying to get it done. He can play next year because of this.
Since the Seahawks drafted him in the seventh round, he has rushed for over 3000 yards and 24 touchdown. He had two of the healthiest seasons of his career in the last two years. He missed four games last year.
In four games this season, he ran for 232 yards and three touchdown.
"We've had to be prepared to move on because we've been dealing with it for a while," he said. Chris has been one of my favorite guys for a long time, ever since we found him and drafted him, and he's brought a lot of style and strength to the team. He'll always be one of my favorites. There is something about the way he carried it that we have missed all season. We have to take care of him. We have to get him right.
Collins will have a chance to resurrect his career in his second stint with Seattle. He has started all five of the games since the injury to Carson.
DeeJay Dallas, Travis Homer, and RashaadPenny are at tailback for the Seahawks. Since Seattle drafted him 27th overall,Penny has played behind Carson in three-plus injury-filled seasons. He didn't play in Green Bay.
"I'm really looking forward to seeing where he goes and contributes this week, I'm looking forward to seeing him," he said. He has a good role for us and we are anxious to see him get going. It's his time to help us. He will be a big part of it as we go through the next couple weeks.
Left tackle Duane Brown is okay after practicing Friday. He doesn't have a game designation, which means he's healthy enough to play.
Adams and Reed were hurt in practice. Both practiced Friday.
We have to wait and use every day because we don't know enough about it. They're hopeful that they're going to be okay.
Kerry Hyder Jr. practiced as a limited participant on Friday and feels good. Also listed as questionable are offensive linemen Jamarco Jones and Cody Barton.
