Jake Bobo's unfortunate season-ending injury was a big blow to the Seattle Seahawks' wide receiver corps. It may have even changed their plans about how many pass catchers to carry on the 53-man roster.
That's why all eyes were on second-year WR Tory Horton, a training camp standout who showed flashes as a rookie and has been out for the last week or so. He's dealing with an undisclosed lower-body injury.
However, it looks like he won't have to miss much time. When asked about his situation, head coach Mike Macdonald revealed that, while he won't share many details ahead of the season opener, he's not expected to be out for the long run.
The Seattle Seahawks may have Tory Horton back in no time
"Doing good, doing good. You know me, injury stuff coming into Week 1, is just— we're gonna keep it pretty close to the vest," the coach said.
Of course, this doesn't say much. People still don't know what Horton is dealing with, and while knowing that this isn't a long-term issue is fairly encouraging, his availability for Week 1 should be up in the air.
At least, Horton should be a lock to make the roster, and more so with Bobo's injury. He's an electric and crafty guy who can turn the corner in no time, and he showed a strong knack for finding paydirt in his first year in the league.
As a fifth-round pick, Horton only needed 13 catches to pile up a whopping 161 receiving yards and five touchdowns last season. He looked like an absolute draft steal and the team's first big-play specialist since Tyler Lockett.
Unfortunately, he suffered a season-ending fractured shin and missed half of the campaign. He didn't miss a beat early on in training camp, once again showcasing his scoring prowess regardless of who was under center for Brian Fleury's offense.
The Seahawks spent big bucks to keep Rashid Shaheed in town, and he should be in for a bigger role in the offense after being mostly a special teams guy in his first half-season with the team. Also, Jaxon Smith-Njigba will continue to be the focal point of the passing game.
That said, Cooper Kupp is getting older, and NFL players tend to age in dog years, so with Bobo out, there should be plenty of opportunities for Horton to take the field once he's back to full strength. Again, that might be in Week 1 or not—Coach Macdonald likely won't say anything unless he's actually required to.
The Seahawks have been dealt some tough blows on the injury front this offseason, but most of their key guys should be just fine. If you guys want any specifics, though, it looks like you'll just have to wait until the days leading up to kickoff.
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