Carroll: Graham’s status unknown for Seahawks’ Week 3 game

Published 1:30 am Monday, September 18, 2017

By Gregg Bell

The News Tribune

RENTON — Jimmy Graham’s status for Sunday’s game at Tennessee is like the Seahawks’ ability to consistently score points right now.

Unknown.

Those struggles on offense is why “the competition is on” for starting jobs, particularly on the line.

That was what coach Pete Carroll said Monday, the day after it took one magical play by Russell Wilson for Seattle’s lone touchdown of the season to beat San Francisco 12-9 in the home opener.

“He’s got a sore ankle,” Carroll said of Graham, his star tight end currently stalled. “Got to figure out what that means.”

Asked about Graham’s status for Sunday’s 1:05 p.m. game at the Titans in Nashville, Carroll said: “Can’t tell you any more. It’s too soon.”

Graham was injured in the first half against San Francisco, after he dropped a pass on the first series because of a big hit. He was getting his left knee and leg below the joint looked at on the field by trainers and the team doctor, then went into a tent behind Seattle’s bench for more testing. Carroll initially mentioned Graham “banged his knee” following the game, which Graham re-entered and finished, playing 53 snaps.

“He thought that’s what they thought happened, but it was really…his knee is fine and it’s centered in his ankle, the problem,” Carroll said, adding it “certainly did” limit him.

“We had some stuff going early and it didn’t hook up and he was not 100 percent. But he finished and did a great job of doing that. He was banged up.”

Graham had one catch on two targets, for 1 yard, against the 49ers.

During Sunday’s game, Graham stayed in to block or helped linemen by providing “chip” blocks on 23 snaps. Often he then released on short, late pass routes. Most of those blocking assignments were in the first half. He went down field running pass routes 30 times, but was only targeted once. That’s because Wilson again was often scrambling away from more pressure by the time Graham was turning around to complete his route. Graham was on the sideline for 26 snaps, some of those while the team’s medical staff was looking at his knee before he returned to the game.

Two games into the final season of his $40 million contract, Graham has four catches on nine targets for 9 yards, with two dropped passes.

“He hasn’t had many opportunities to do much so far,” Carroll said.

“He hasn’t caught a lot of balls, so we haven’t got a lot to him. The balls he has been getting is a lot of short stuff that has happened so far. It’s the way it’s gone.”

Graham increasingly stayed in to chip block as the Packers swarmed Wilson early in the opener. Graham did the same thing early in the win over the 49ers.

Blocking is absolutely not why Graham has a $40 million contract. Nor is it why Seattle traded Pro Bowl center Max Unger and a first-round draft choice to New Orleans for the NFL’s most prolific pass-catching tight end in the spring of 2015.

Asked if Graham is chipping and blocking along with running backs more this season, Carroll said no.

“We’ve been doing that for some time,” the coach said. “It’s situations for us. Down and distance dictates that, somewhat.”

As for the linemen that have needed the additional help pass blocking, and who haven’t consistently cleared running lanes, either, Carroll didn’t rule out changes before the game at Tennessee (1-1).

“We are shaking it every week now. It wouldn’t matter if it happened now or anytime, we are always working to see how we can fix things and adjust,” Carroll said.

“So, there will be some things that will be a little bit different this week.”

Does that means changes to scheme? Or to personnel?

“Yes,” the coach replied.

He mentioned “the competition is on,” then said guard Oday Aboushi, rookie center/guard/tackle Ethan Pocic and tackle Matt Tobin are pushing for playing time.

During pregame warm-ups before Seattle’s slog past the 49ers, Pocic got a couple snaps at center, Aboushi at right guard and Tobin at right tackle in front of Wilson and the starting offense. But the starting line for the game was the same as it was for the opener: Rees Odhiambo at left tackle, Luke Joeckel at left guard, Justin Britt at center, Mark Glowinski at right guard and Germain Ifedi at right tackle. Those five have taken every snap of the season so far.

Wilson’s been sacked six times and hit 17 other times through two games. No wonder some of his throws have been far off-target.

“We have a lot to get better at,” Britt, a Pro Bowl alternate last season, said following Sunday’s win.

Glowinski in particular struggled in pass protection late against the 49ers. He got beaten off the snap on the fourth-quarter play where Wilson scrambled away from all five Niners that were rushing free at him. He wound up flipping the winning touchdown pass to Paul Richardson, but the problems persist.

Glowinski, last year’s starting left guard, beat out Aboushi through the preseason for the right-guard job. So Aboushi has played with the starting offense as recently as a few weeks ago.

“Yes, yeah, we do have good competition there,” Carroll said. “Oday’s done a really good job.

“Pocic’s done a really good job. Matt Tobin’s showing us that he can play, too (after arriving in a trade last month from Philadelphia). So there are some guys that are available.

“It’s hard to get very many guys on game day up with the numbers and all of that, but the competition is on. The question came up where ‘What are the things we are going to do?’ We’re looking to make sure that we keep it at the right edge to get better. We have to keep improving.”

LOCKETT: “BEST HE’S FELT”

Tyler Lockett had six catches against San Francisco, on nine targets. The receptions were his second most since week 14 of his rookie season of 2015 — his career-high of seven catches came last Dec. 15 at home against the Rams.

He also had a 27-yard kickoff return. He was so jazzed by his day he tried to return a 49ers kickoff that went 9 yards into the end zone. He jab-stepped back to start running his back foot stepped on the back line of the end zone for a touchback.

It was Lockett’s second game since he broke two bones in his leg Christmas Eve.

“Yeah, Lockett came out of this game feeling the best he’s felt all year,” Carroll said. “He had some good activity: six catches and had (five kick and punt) returns, and he came out feeling the strongest and the best he’s felt — and that’s self-reporting. That’s a great sign. That means he’s getting over the hump and he’s caught up and not only is he feeling good, but his conditioning is getting there, and all of that.

“We can really rely on going to him. I thought he played really well (Sunday) and made some big plays for us.”

EXTRA POINTS: Carroll said special-teams mainstay Neiko Thorpe has a sore ankle that needs further evaluation… Richardson felt pained Monday. The day earlier he dislocated the ring finger on his right hand, through the skin, then had the finger put back in place and sewn closed in the locker room. He then returned to the game to make the winning catch. “Yeah, he’s pretty sore today,” Carroll said. “He gutted it out in the ballgame, and we think that by the end of the week that he should be in good shape (and) ready to go.”