Injuries hit Seattle secondary

Nov 17, 2017 - 5:59 AM RENTON, Wash. -- For the time in 100 games, the Seattle Seahawks will have to play a game without Richard Sherman as their starting left cornerback.

And with strong safety Kam Chancellor also potentially sidelined and free safety Earl Thomas nursing a hamstring strain, Seattle's "Legion of Boom" secondary comes into Monday night's game against the Atlanta Falcons as banged up as they've ever been as a unit.

Sherman is on injured reserve and had surgery to repair his Achilles on Wednesday. Chancellor's status is uncertain as he's still undergoing tests to determine the severity of a stinger sustained last Thursday against Arizona.

"It's definitely going to be weird," linebacker Bobby Wagner said of potentially missing Sherman and Chancellor. "I've never played a game without Richard. He's definitely going to be missed. But to have both of those guys missing in action is not something that we've ever had to deal with, but I think it's something that we're prepared for. I think we can hold it down until at least one of them gets back. The other one (Sherman) might take a while."

Bradley McDougald would start at strong safety in place of Chancellor after playing the last two weeks in Thomas' free safety spot. Jeremy Lane will assume Sherman's starting job at cornerback.

Thomas is expected to return to the lineup after missing the last two games with a hamstring strain, but it will be alongside a depleted group.

"We're very fortunate to have Bradley. He's played great," head coach Pete Carroll said of McDougald. "It's no big deal for him to play strong safety versus free safety so he'll jump right in there."

Additionally, Seattle brought back cornerback Byron Maxwell this week, who played four seasons for Seattle before spending the last two years in Philadelphia and Miami, respectively. Maxwell feels he has something to prove in his return with Seattle after two relatively disappointing seasons elsewhere.

"Definitely. Always, man," Maxwell said. "It's another opportunity to get out here and show what I can do so I'm looking forward to it. You've always got to prove yourself in this league no matter what. No matter if you're Dwight Freeney, he's out here trying to prove himself that he can still do it so no matter who you are, you're still trying to prove that you can do it."

Super Bowl XLIX is the closest Seattle's come to being as banged up in their back end. Sherman placed the game with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, Chancellor sprained a medical collateral ligament in his knee the Friday before the game and nearly missed the game. Meanwhile, Thomas played with a labrum tear in his shoulder that required offseason surgery.

But they all played. That won't be the case on Monday night.

--Running back C.J. Prosise was placed on injured reserve Tuesday with Mike Davis being promoted to the active roster to take his place.

Prosise played in parts of just five games this season due to a pair of high-ankle sprains that limited his availability and ultimately moved him to the injured list. It continued a string of serious injuries for Prosise dating back to his rookie year. A broken wrist bone and fractured scapula limited him to just six games as a rookie.

"C.J. is a marvelous player, but he has just not been able to stay healthy," head coach Pete Carroll said. "So we are going to give him the time to get well and heal it up."

Davis has spent the entire season on Seattle's practice squad after a solid preseason. He carried 24 times for 106 yards in four preseason games for the Seahawks. He also caught five passes for 41 yards with a touchdown.

"Mike has been, really, one of our favorites going all the way back to camp," Carroll said. "He had a really good offseason and a really good camp with us and a good preseason. ... We see a little bit of a well-roundedness in him. He's real competitive and he's really hungry to go. He's been with us all year, so the transition is seamless and looking forward to seeing what he brings."

Davis appeared in 14 career games with the San Francisco 49ers after being a fourth-round pick in 2015. He managed just 108 yards and a touchdown on 54 total carries, good for just a 2.0 yards-per-carry average. He also caught 10 passes for 63 yards.

"More confident, more angry since I got cut anyway," Davis said. "I play with an edge, a chip on my shoulder. That's something that really killed me is when I got cut (by the 49ers). It changed everything I do.

"It was a major shock to me because I feel like I didn't get a chance there, especially with the new coaching staff, but it's something I can't be angry about. It happens. It's a business."

While Seattle ranks 22nd in the league in rushing, quarterback Russell Wilson is their leading rusher. Their second leading rusher is Chris Carson, who has been out since Week 4 due to a severe high-ankle sprain and fractured leg. Eddie Lacy is the team's leading rusher currently on the roster with 128 yards on 48 carries. He ranks 77th in the league in rushing.

"It is frustrating somewhat," Carroll said of Seattle's rushing game struggles. "We've got to keep moving and we've got to do what we can with our guys and it hasn't been quite the same, but we're still moving the football and we're making a lot of first downs and we can do a lot of damage. We just have to do it the way we can do it. And I never give up on the fact of trying to balance out your attack. I think it's the best way to play football, so we'll find a way to do that, but it is a little bit different. It hasn't been obvious as it has been in the past."

--Cornerback Jeremy Lane finds himself back in a starting role with Seattle just weeks after he was traded to the Houston Texans.

If not for a failed physical, Lane would still be in Houston. Instead, he's now starting in the spot vacated by the loss of Richard Sherman to a torn Achilles.

"It's crazy how things worked out with me being traded, coming back and I've got an opportunity to start now so I'm excited," Lane said.

Lane sustained a thigh bruise in Seattle's game against Houston in October. The very next day, he was dealt to the Texans as part of a package that enabled the Seahawks to acquire left tackle Duane Brown. When the thigh bruise scuttled his physical with the Texans, Lane jumped back on a flight to Seattle uncertain of the reception he would receive coming back to the team that had just traded him away.

"It wasn't even 24 hours," said Lane, who called the experience an emotional roller coaster. "When I came in the locker room and walked in, I thought it would be awkward at first. But as soon as I came in it was kind of like 'fool!' and everybody started clapping their hands and giving me hugs. It was crazy."

The trade was amended with additional draft compensation being exchanged to complete the deal. With Sherman going down last Thursday night, the circumstances turned into an unexpected benefit for the Seahawks.

"We are very fortunate to have Jeremy Lane with us and ready to play," head coach Pete Carroll said. "And now, Shaq (Griffin) has become a starter, Jeremy has legitimately been a starter, so we couldn't be much more fortunate than that to have a guy step up and a guy that has been around the program and all that."

Lane said he finally feels like he's back to full health. He's played just three full games this season due to a groin strain, thigh bruise and first-quarter ejection in Seattle's season opener against Green Bay.

"I'm ready now," he said. "Finally, I'm ready to rock and roll."