Seahawks training camp brings little worries and big worries
The Seahawks came into training camp with some questions and some concerns. Some of those concerns are growing into pretty big worries.
When you lose 12 Pro Bowl seasons from your defense (Kam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, Michael Bennett, and Cliff Avril), you come into the new season with a lot of questions. The Seahawks could possibly lose six more Pro Bowl seasons if Earl Thomas is traded. While in some ways it’s exciting to see new players and new possibilities (especially in the secondary), it certainly helps to have some continuity from last year, too. Right now, there are three question marks that are little worries, but could become very big worries very fast.
Worry number one is Doug Baldwin. John Boyle of seahawks.com reported via twitter that Baldwin would miss a couple of weeks of practice. Pete Carroll described it as “a little bit of a sore knee”, and that the team would ease him back into practice. That introduces an additional worry for me. Pete being the eternal optimist that he is, I wonder if Doug even has a knee. Nah, I’m sure he’s fine, or will be. Still, when your number one receiver misses weeks of practice, it doesn’t make you really comfortable. For now, that’s a little worry.
Worry number two is defensive end Frank Clark. Clark is recovering from wrist surgery performed in June. Clark said via Twitter he played last season with broken bones in both hands, but surgery would have taken him out of the line-up for as long as ten weeks. My first thought is, Frank Clark is one tough dude. My second thought is, why wait till June to have the surgery? That was quickly followed by a third thought, mainly that it’s likely the docs hoped the fractures would heal on their own. The big worry is that Clark will suffer some gawdawful setback and miss more time than expected.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks worries can multiply
The Seahawks can’t afford that, because of little worry number three. That little worry is very close to growing into a big worry all on its own. It’s about the health of Dion Jordan. With Bennett traded and Avril released due to injury, Seattle hoped Jordan could wreak havoc over a full season like he did in his five games last year.
The former Dolphin wasn’t even activated by the Seahawks until November last season. Now we start another camp with him on the shelf. It’s a real shame, as he looks so good when he’s healthy. And Seattle really needs him.
Those last two worries can easily turn in to one huge worry. What if Clark does have a setback? Granted, he played with broken bones last season, but someone needs to tell Frank that’s not human. What if Jordan’s injury, reportedly “a stress issue”, is even worse?
According to ESPN’s Brady Henderson, Pete Carroll said “it’s gonna be a while. He’s got a little bit of healing to do, so it’s gonna be a while.” Based on my earlier theory of Pete’s Positive Prognoses, this could mean that not only will Jordan miss the season, his whole family may be taken ill for a month.
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Of course that won’t the case. Doug Baldwin has only missed two games in his seven year career. Frank Clark has only missed two games in three years – and remember, he played all sixteen last season with mangled mitts. As for Dion Jordan, well, let’s just hope he heals quickly this time. With a revamped secondary, the Seahawks need more pressure up front than ever.