The Seattle Seahawks have experienced a rash of injuries since training camp and most of them, though not all, prove that players can’t completely avoid getting hurt by not playing in the preseason. Bud Clark and Mason Richman had their seasons ended in the same preseason game, while the rest have all happened in virtually every other manner you can imagine:
Sam Darnold (hip), injured on the first drive of the first game
Robbie Ouzts (neck), practiced but reaggravated injury from last season
Nick Emmanwori (ankle), didn’t practice, had a delayed surgery on injury from last season
Jake Bobo (knee), injured in joint practice
Ty Okada (hamstring), injured in practice days before first game
Mason Richman (leg), injured in Titans preseason game
Bud Clark (ankle), injured in Titans preseason game
Zach Charbonnet (knee), still recovering from 2025 torn ACL
Irv Charles (unknown), injured early in training camp
Tory Horton (hamstring), injured midway through training camp
Aside from losing their starting quarterback for at least one game, the Seahawks actually walked away from Week 1 unscathed. No other injuries have been reported from the game. However, Darnold is the ninth Seahawk player to be injured since the beginning of training camp and all nine were expected to make the 53-man roster.
That’s 17-percent of the roster!
That’s not including a tenth player, Charbonnet, who wasn’t expected to be placed on the 53-man roster until after a stint on PUP.
The good news:
The Seahawks could get back three players when they face the Arizona Cardinals next Sunday.
Although we have no way of knowing the status of these players in a week, Emmanwori and Horton were both listed as “questionable” in Week 1, meaning that there was some slight hope of their availability. Okada was immediately listed as “out”, which doesn’t necessarily mean he’s less likely to be available as it could just be the timing of his injury relative to the others.
Ouzts, Bobo, Clark, and Richman are out for the entire 2026 season.
If it’s any consolation, none of these four were necessarily earmarked for huge roles and the Week 1 returns of their replacements are encouraging:
Brady Russell’s expanded role as FB1 included the first two catches of his career, gaining 20 yards; Russell was already looking like a key to Brian Fleury’s offense before the season anyway
If Rodney Thomas II and Nehemiah Pritchett could be considered “fill-ins” for Emmanwori and Clark, then they played like much more. They looked like starters against the Patriots.
Richman was merely slated for a reserve role who might not get any playing time.
Bobo wasn’t likely to see many targets on offense and though he is a leader on special teams, Seattle has quite a few of those.
Now if the Seahawks are able to re-integrate Emmanwori and Okada next week or the week after, it gives Mike Macdonald even better depth in the secondary with Pritchett than we thought he had before. Seattle’s only “problem” is that all of their secondary players looked good in Week 1 and now some of them will have to get fewer snaps in the future.
On offense, Horton will give Fleury and Drew Lock/Sam Darnold more diversity in pass-catching weapons moving forward. By avoiding IR-to-return, Horton is likely to come back in the fold by Week 2 or Week 3. Rashid Shaheed was difficult to find, like Seattle’s “Where’s Waldo?” against New England, so hopefully that is not something that continues. Otherwise, Horton could be upgraded to WR3 toot sweet.
Returning Later
It’s not just Sam Darnold who will miss Week 2 but return in the near future.
The Seahawks placed Irv Charles on IR-to-return, meaning that Seattle sees him as a member of the 53-man roster when he’s ready to go. Charles was injured very early in training camp and isn’t a well-known player, but by trading for him and then using a return designation on him, the Seahawks have made it clear that they like him and want to use him extensively on special teams. The loss of Bobo couldn’t have hurt his chances either.
It’s not exactly clear what happened to Charles or a timeline, but it seems reasonable to assume it’s not a long-term injury.
The media has asked Macdonald about Charbonnet incessantly this offseason but the answer never really changes. Usually “he’s making great progress” blah blah blah. I’m sure he’s making great progress, but even an aggressive estimation of his return wouldn’t likely have him back before Week 7. That would be a Sunday night game against the Chiefs.
But Week 8 is a Monday night game against Bears, meaning that Charbonnet would have another eight days after Week 7 to practice and prepare for his return. So Week 8 feels like an acceptable guess for an early, but still logical return date.
Again though, it’s not like running back is a position where Seattle is hurting. Jadarian Price was very impressive in his debut and George Holani is more than acceptable as a third-down back.
Aside from Darnold, it’s really not the injuries of the past six weeks that should concern fans. The Seahawks have managed to survive, and in some cases thrive, through every one of them.
It’s really more of the injuries of the future. And as we’ve seen, an injury can happen any time, any place, and in any manner. It’s not avoiding them that matters, it’s adjusting to them.
What’s your worst sports injury?
I’m opening comments up to ALL Seaside Joe subscribers today, free or paid, because I want to give everyone a chance to share their story:
What’s your worst sports-related (or non sports-related) injury?
How did it happen and what was it like to recover? Oftentimes we’ll hear from Seahawks fans who will share their own experiences with a torn ACL or a dislocated hip. There are tons of interesting tales of pain out there! I want to read about yours:
Again, all are able to comment. Share your worst injuries, and I promise we have writer-reader confidentiality.
Broke my tailbone riding a bull in a rodeo for the first time. I retired later that day.
Concussion was my worst sports injury. It was bad,(on a kickoff return) I lost consciousness and it ended my quite unspectacular college career.