Week 14 is a dangerous game for the Seattle Seahawks. Are the Atlanta Falcons an overly good team? No. But they do host the game on Sunday, and Seattle has a logical reason to overlook them. A 12's favorite team could be playoff-bound, and the Falcons are the last team that Seattle will face this season that likely will not be.
A few ways exist for the Seahawks to not look past the Falcons. One is team culture, of course. That seems solid, and head coach Mike Macdonald has done a great job of making sure it stays that way. Another is to make a team leader active when they haven't played in a long time.
That appears to be the case in Week 14. On the Seahawks' final injury report for Week 14, rookie Rylie Mills, who hasn't played this season due to a knee injury suffered in his final season in college, and wide receiver Dareke Young, who was a full participant in practice, are the only players listed as out.
Julian Love expected to play for the Seattle Seahawks in Week 14
That means everyone else could have a chance to play, and that includes former Pro Bowler Julian Love. Love is one of the better defensive players Seattle has when healthy, but he hasn't been healthy for most of the season. He hurt his hamstring early in the year, missed Week 3, came back in Week 4, and hasn't played since.
Love was a limited participant in practice ahead of Week 14, as were running back Kenneth Walker and right guard Anthony Bradford, but none of those players had any kind of injury designation. Does that mean Love will be limited? Maybe.
Still, the bigger picture would be that he and defensive tackle Jarran Reed, who was a full participant in practice after returning from injured reserve, are returning for the last stretch of games of the season. The Seattle Seahawks are in excellent shape to make the postseason, and Reed and Love's return only augments that hope.
The Atlanta Falcons, though, won't have wide receiver Drake London. He is by far the best Atlanta wideout, and his absence will once again be felt. Seattle needs to take advantage.