-
Brady Henderson, ESPN
RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Seahawks are likely to be without both of their starting tackles Sunday when they take on the Detroit Lions in the din of Ford Field.
The team placed right tackle Abraham Lucas on injured reserve Wednesday because of the sore right knee that bothered him in training camp and sidelined him in the second half of the season opener. Coach Pete Carroll, speaking to reporters before the team announced the move, said both Lucas and left tackle Charles Cross were “hurting” and that it would be a challenge for either to play Sunday.
Cross sprained his right big toe late in the third quarter of Week 1, forcing the Seahawks to finish their 30-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams with third-year backups Stone Forsythe and Jake Curhan at left and right tackle, respectively.
Cross was listed as a non-participant in Wednesday’s practice. Meanwhile, safety Jamal Adams took part in his first practice since tearing his quad tendon in last season’s opener and was limited. Rookie cornerback Devon Witherspoon (hamstring) was listed as a full participant. The Seahawks are hoping the fifth overall pick will make his NFL debut Sunday after missing the opener.
The Seahawks signed 41-year-old Jason Peters to their practice squad Tuesday. They also added a pair of tackles to their 53-man roster Wednesday, signing Raiqwon O’Neal off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ practice squad and McClendon Curtis off the Las Vegas Raiders‘ practice squad. Both are undrafted rookies. Seattle views O’Neal as a left tackle, while Curtis played left tackle and both guard spots in college.
Peters, one of the most decorated tackles of the past two decades, has made nine Pro Bowls and twice been voted a First-Team All-Pro in his 19 NFL seasons.
“Twenty sounds better than 19, don’t it?” Peters told reporters in the locker room Wednesday when asked why he wanted to continue playing. “Seattle’s got a good team, man. I feel like we can make a run in the playoffs and get to a Super Bowl, to be honest. They’re a good team. I watched them last year. Why not come for 20 and get a ring?”
Peters appeared in 12 games last season with the Dallas Cowboys with one start, playing 136 snaps at left tackle — his primary position throughout his career — as well as 52 at left guard and 33 at right tackle. His ESPN pass block win rate as a tackle was 85.7%. Peters didn’t play enough to qualify among the top 64 offensive tackles, but that mark would have ranked 47th.
“I can still play,” Peters said. “If that wasn’t the case, I wouldn’t have come and suited up. I’ve still got a little bit of juice.”
Carroll called Peters a “remarkable player.”
“Look at his film from last year — you can’t tell how old he is,” Carroll said. “He played really well and played a couple different spots and showed flexibility there. He’s a long-term left tackle, but the flexibility is there and his feet were moving beautifully. … He looked pretty darn good today. I’m going to just tell you, he looked quick and light on his feet.”
But Carroll wasn’t ready to make any declarations about how or when Peters would be able to help the Seahawks, having seen him only in the morning walk-through when he spoke to reporters.
“We’ve got to see how he is,” Carroll said. “You would think we’d give him a couple weeks to get ready to go. I don’t know if we can afford to do that. We’ll see what happens here as we get one day at a time here to work with him. He’s a really interesting guy, and we’re lucky to have a guy like this come to us at a time like this.”
Peters was asked when he thinks he can be ready to play.
“Maybe this Sunday, maybe a couple weeks,” he said. “I’ve just got to get a feel for the pads. I haven’t had them on since January, so it’s going to take some time.”
Lucas has to spend at least four games on IR, meaning he isn’t eligible to return until Week 7 against the Arizona Cardinals (Seattle has a bye in Week 5). Lucas, a third-round pick last year, ranked second among rookie tackles in PBWR. Cross, the ninth overall pick last year, ranked third.
