Seahawks Week 18 injury report: No Bobby Wagner vs. Cardinals
By Lee Vowell
The Seattle Seahawks play their final game of the 2021 season on Sunday versus the Cardinals. Among the players missing for Seattle will be linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Wagner has made the Pro Bowl eight straight seasons and has been All-Pro in six of those years. He has missed just two games in the last seven seasons so him missing a game is a big deal. But he will definitely be out against Arizona.
Cody Barton will start in his place and this is a big opportunity for Barton. While Wagner is still a beast when it comes to making tackles, he made fewer impact plays this year. Wagner had his fewest tackles-for-loss since 2015 (3), his fewest quarterback hits ever (3) and had just 1 sack.
One of the biggest questions of the upcoming offseason is whether Seattle will keep Wagner on the roster next year at his current salary. Wagner is due to make $20.350 million next year and the Seahawks would save $16.6 million if they released him. Hopefully, Wagner will just restructure his deal but if not, 12s could be looking at a glimpse of Seattle’s near-future with Jordyn Brooks and Cody Barton at linebacker.
Seahawks will be without Bobby Wagner in Week 18 versus the Cardinals
Besides Wagner, Seattle will definitely be without cornerback John Reid and right tackle Brandon Shell due to injuries.
Still on Seattle’s reserve/COVID-19 list, though, is safety Ryan Neal, defensive tackle Al Woods and defensive end Alton Robinson. Neal likely being out means whoever playing strong safety for the Seahawks is going to be someone 12s aren’t used to seeing. Safety could be a massive issue for Seattle facing Kyler Murray and the Cardinals.
Left guard Damien Lewis and cornerback Sidney Jones IV were activated from the COVID list.
The Seahawks have three players listed as questionable: tight end Will Dissly, right guard Gabe Jackson and defensive end Carlos Dunlap.
For the Cardinals, they will not have running back Chase Edmonds (who has rushed for 592 yards this season), wide receiver Rondale Moore, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips and cornerback Marco Wilson. RB James Connor, LB Dennis Gardeck, TE Demetrius Harris and DE Zach Allen are listed as questionable.