Jake Bobo injury update

Mike Macdonald addressed some Seahawks injuries after the game

Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald told the media that receiver Jake Bobo suffered a concussion on the ugly punt return collision against the Green Bay Packers on Saturday. Bobo walked off of the field on his own power after spending a couple of minutes (?) on the ground being evaluated by medical staff. The tone of Macdonald’s message about Bobo sounded a) happy that he’s getting the medical help that he needs but also b) cautious about giving fans any optimism that Bobo could be back at practice next week.

Saying that a player has a “concussion” is like saying that an area of the world was “hit by an earthquake”. That’s simply not enough information to assess the seriousness of the damage, so this could mean that Jake Bobo is out for a week or a month. Given that Seattle has to make cuts by Tuesday afternoon, and that concussions are typically not resolved in three days, Bobo’s injury would increase the likelihood that the Seahawks keep a receiver they may not have otherwise kept.

The truth is that the extra receiver they keep now could be Jake Bobo. He played a lot of snaps in a meaningless preseason game and was clearly out to prove himself as a viable option on special teams this month. Perhaps Seattle will see an opportunity to stash Bobo on an injury list for the time being.

In another case, this could be good news for Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who led the Seahawks with three catches for 33 yards in the first half. It’s telling that a 30-year-old veteran played the entire first half of the third preseason game, but also worth noting that Tory Horton is dealing with an ankle injury too and that may have played a part in the reasoning to hold the fifth round rookie out of the contest.

When you tally up the early list of injuries at receiver, you get an argument for keeping one more than you might otherwise need:

• Bobo (concussion)

• Horton (ankle)

• Steven Sims (hamstring)

In addition to these injuries, Cooper Kupp is Cooper Kupp and he’s 32. Macdonald told the media that the coaches will take everything into consideration with regards to how many receivers they keep, including the fact that they have to keep three quarterbacks and a fullback. That’s two roster spots that Seattle normally would haven’t to use on those positions. However, for how long can the Seahawks count on Horton and Kupp to be healthy? How long will Bobo be out with a concussion? Head injuries can take months. They can derail a player’s entire career.

A possible final roster could include:

• Jaxon Smith-Njigba

• Cooper Kupp

• Tory Horton

• Marquez Valdes-Scantling

• Jake Bobo

• Dareke Young

Then the team might have to place Bobo on IR and re-sign another player to take his place on the 53-man roster. Maybe a receiver (Cody White? Sims?) or maybe not.

Other injury updates

CB Tyler Hall

The player who collided with Bobo, Hall suffered a knee injury. Macdonald made it sound like the injury was not as serious as it looked, but Hall had long odds to make the 53-man roster anyway.

G Christian Haynes

Macdonald was asked about Haynes, who did not suit up for the game, and the coach said that the guard has a little bit of a pec injury. The reporter was almost certainly fishing for information on Haynes’ status with the team and Macdonald came off a little bit cagy when answering if Haynes would be able to return to practice next week. Macdonald said something like “probably” but there’s a chance that the 2024 third round pick does not make the team.

LB Tyrice Knight

Macdonald didn’t have any info on Knight, but praised Drake Thomas for his training camp and says he makes a good dime linebacker.

C Olu Oluwatimi

There’s no injury here anymore. Olu suited up, while Jalen Sundell didn’t, but Macdonald said that was only in case of an emergency. This implies that Sundell hasn’t officially won the center job yet, but that he’s going to, in which case I would assume the short is leash for whoever wins.

Andrew Janocko called plays

Klint Kubiak and Macdonald handed play calling duties to quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko on Saturday. This is becoming a more common practice in the preseason, setting guys up to get promotions in the future, either internally or externally. It makes even more sense for Seattle because just in case Kubiak does so well that he leaves the Seahawks in 2026, they’ll have an internal option with some experience on film now.

Jalen Milroe

I don’t take much from what coaches say about players to the press because what are they supposed to say? The bulk of criticism is going to be kept in-house. It’s better to hear what coaches don’t say or to read between the lines. Macdonald made a point to say that Milroe has to do a better job of protecting the football after the rookie fumbled three times, all of which were recovered by the defense. Macdonald did praise Milroe for improved operation before the snap, something that the Seahawks have been saying he needs to get better at in the NFL.

I would not be surprised if Milroe is the inactive quarterback in Week 1. There’s just a long ways to go before he seems ready to do much more than the tush push type of play and I am just not sure how valuable that is to Kubiak and Macdonald as of the season opener against the 49ers.

But as most of what we know right now is, that’s all speculation.