Gregg Bell
The News Tribune
RENTON — Forget about the official listing. Doug Baldwin is playing Sunday at Arizona.
The Seahawks listed the Pro Bowl wide receiver as questionable to play. But coach Pete Carroll confirmed what was obvious from his return to practicing this week, that the Pro Bowl wide receiver will play after missing the last two games with a sprained knee.
“Excited to tell you that Doug Baldwin’s going to play in this game. He had a great week. He looked terrific. He is as raring to go as anybody could (be). We are really excited to have him back out there. He’s a big part of our job. Means a lot to us,” Carroll said following Friday’s walk-through practice—that, yes, Earl Thomas participated in.
Baldwin’s said all week: “I’m ready to go.”
He returned to practice this week for the first time since before he got hurt Sept. 9 in the opener at Denver, and has been making all the cuts and moves the Seahawks expect.
K.J. Wright will miss his fourth consecutive game to start the season following arthroscopic knee surgery late last month. The Seahawks would love it if the Pro Bowl weakside linebacker could return next week to play the undefeated Los Angeles Rams at CenturyLink Field.
Mychal Kendricks will start his third consecutive game for Wright at Arizona.
Lead running back Chris Carson is questionable with a hip injury, though Carroll said Carson wants to play while making it sound like he will, too. Carson has been limited in practices this week after his career highs of 32 carries and 102 yards last weekend in the win over Dallas.
“He felt a little something (coming out of the Cowboys game) and we just took it easy on him,” Carroll said. “Had a bunch of carries last week, as we all know, and it warranted a little bit of a break. We just have to make sure he’s OK.
“He thinking he’s going (to play). We just are going to make sure.”
Still, expect rookie first-round draft choice Rashaad Penny to carry some more of the rushing load Sunday against the Cardinals.
Carroll said running back C.J. Prosise is in the same situation as Carson (availability-wise, not value-wise, that is). Carroll said Prosise had “an appointment” to examine his core-muscle injury and “came back in pretty good stead.” The third-down receiving back thinks he can play through what is his eighth injury since Seattle drafted him in 2016. The team will make sure of that on the field before Sunday’s game.
Earl Thomas fully practiced. That raised his rate of full participation over the last six Seahawks practices to 50 percent. He blew off last Friday’s practice before starring with two interceptions against Dallas on Sunday.
So that’s progress in a week, after Carroll and Thomas met to set a course to proceed with his unhappiness over not getting a new contract or traded by now.
Carroll said Thomas had an “excellent” week of practice. He didn’t work on Wednesday, than was a full participant Thursday and Friday.
The Seahawks are down another pass rusher and maybe two for their first test inside the NFC West this season. The team declared rookie Rasheem Green is out because of an injured ankle. Fellow defensive end Dion Jordan is questionable with a hip injury. That increases the prominance of Quinton Jefferson starting opposite Frank Clark at defensive end at Arizona.
Left guard Ethan Pocic is doubtful to play Sunday because of an ankle injury that caused him to miss the Cowboys game.
Carroll had already said he was probably going to stay with J.R. Sweezy at left guard and D.J. Fluker at right guard against Arizona, after a successful debut of that physical guard pairing against Dallas.
But the news of Baldwin’s return was the overriding good news of the Seahawks’ Friday. Quarterback Russell Wilson missed him during his first games out since 2012, Baldwin’s second one in the NFL with Seattle. Wilson especially missed Baldwin on third downs, the veteran receiver’s specialty.
Wilson threw three times to Brandon Marshall on third down in the opening half of last weekend’s game. Marshall had all three go off his hands, and the Seahawks punted three more times than they may have with the proven Baldwin in there.
“Just watching him during the week, seeing how crisp he is and the routes that he runs, the way you can just see Russell’s confidence in him and kind of the anticipation of where he is going to be and getting the ball out to him, it’s SO valuable,” Carroll said.
“We’ve got to work him back in a little bit with how much we work him. We’ll see how it goes. He looks fantastic. He looks like he’s in top-flight condition, and all, which he’s worked really hard to make that happen. And so we’ll see how the game goes.
“But he doesn’t look great. And he does mean a lot to us, just in continuity and confidence, and all that. You can’t replace all that time, and understanding, and chemistry and communication (between Baldwin and Wilson)…
“Over the course of the next two weeks, as he gets back in, it’s going to be a great addition for us.”
