RENTON — The Seattle Seahawks’ defense is already reeling. Seattle surrendered a 17-point fourth-quarter lead in its 27-24 overtime loss at Cincinnati last Sunday, and it was the third time in this young NFL season the Seahawks lost despite holding a fourth-quarter lead.
Now that defense is looking at the possibility of having to face its second consecutive undefeated foe minus its captain.
All-Pro middle linebacker Bobby Wagner is a question mark for Sunday’s home game against the Carolina Panthers because of a pectoral injury, meaning the Seahawks may have to rebound from their devastating loss to the Bengals without arguably their most important defensive piece.
There’s no mistaking the importance of Wagner to Seattle’s defense. The fourth-year pro is leading the Seahawks in tackles (22 solo, 19 assists), after having also led the team in tackles in 2012 and 2013. Last season he missed five games in the middle of the season with a toe injury, and the Seahawks struggled in his absence with losses to St. Louis and Kansas City. But when Wagner returned Seattle went on a roll, winning eight straight games through the end of the regular season and the playoffs before finally being beat by New England in the Super Bowl. Wagner was eventually named first-team All-Pro.
But Wagner suffered a strained pectoral muscle in his chest during Sunday’s game against the undefeated Bengals. He missed two plays because of the injury, one of those resulting in a Cincinnati touchdown. But Wagner returned on Seattle’s next defensive position and finished out the game.
However, reports following the game suggested the injury was severe enough it could force Wagner to miss time. He did not participate in practice Wednesday, and Seahawks coach Pete Carroll was unsure whether Wagner would be available when Seattle hosts the 4-0 Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
“We’re going to go day-to-day,” Carroll said Wednesday during his press conference at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center. “He feels a lot better than he did at game time when he was hurt, and we’re just going to see how it goes. It’ll go all the way to the game, for sure. He’s determined to play, he wants to play and he thinks he can, but we won’t know until we get there.”
If the Seahawks don’t have Wagner available it would likely result in a shuffling of the deck at linebacker. Carroll suggested K.J. Wright, Seattle’s regular starter at weakside linebacker, would likely move inside to take Wagner’s spot, something he did for three of the five games Wagner missed last season. Meanwhile Kevin Pierre-Louis, expected to return after missing the past two games because of a hamstring injury, would be the first candidate to fill in for Wright on the weak side.
Wright, who is second to Wagner on the team in tackles (22 solo, 11 assists), doesn’t believe it’s going to come to that, but if so he said he’s ready for the challenge and added responsibility of moving inside.
“I think (Wagner) is actually going to be able to go, I think everything’s going to work out, I talked to him and he seems to be fine,” Wright said Wednesday. “But no matter what I’m going to practice at both of them this week, get reps at both positions and see what happens on Sunday.”
Wright talked about the differences between playing on the outside and in the middle, emphasizing the communication aspects of playing inside.
“You’re the quarterback of the defense, so if a guy’s not lined up right it’s your fault,” Wright explained. “If something happens it’s all on the middle linebacker. I’ve done it before and I’ll do fine.
“It’s not too much different (from playing outside),” Wright added. “You just have to make the calls, get everyone lined up. I’ve talked to Mike (Bennett), I’ve talked to Kam (Chancellor) to help me out if I am out there and make sure everything’s in order, so everything should be fine.”
The other option for the Seahawks would be for Brock Coyle to start in place of Wagner, with Wright staying in his usual spot.
But whether Wagner plays or not, Wright acknowledges Seattle’s defense needs to be better in the fourth quarter.
“I believe we might get a little bit comfortable, and teams just make big plays,” Wright said about playing with a lead in the fourth quarter. “We’ve dominated them so much we don’t think they’ll keep making those big plays. It’s something we’ve been emphasizing and eventually one day it’s going to stop.”
Check out Nick Patterson’s Seattle Sidelines blog at http://www.heraldnet.com/seattlesidelines, and follow him on Twitter at @NickHPatterson.
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