This Sunday, the Seattle Seahawks face the Washington Commanders on the road in a primetime matchup. The Seahawks look to stay atop the NFC West. The Commanders hope to revitalize their season and enter the Wild Card hunt.
Washington is more formidable than their 3-5 record shows. The team has been plagued by injuries, most notably to quarterback Jayden Daniels. He missed Weeks 3 and 4 due to a knee sprain and was ruled out early in the second half of Week 7 after suffering a hamstring injury, which then sidelined him for Week 8. Daniels hasn’t been cleared to play yet, but he’s expected to suit up for Sunday Night Football against Seattle.
Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for teammate Terry McLaurin. The superstar receiver re-injured a quad that’s hampered him most of the season. Earlier today, head coach Dan Quinn officially ruled McLaurin out for Sunday’s matchup against the Seahawks.
Injury Details
McLaurin initially injured the quad in Week 3 against the Las Vegas Raiders. He missed the following four games before returning on Monday night against the Kansas City Chiefs. It looked as if McLaurin hadn’t missed a step, as he started the game with three catches for 54 yards and a touchdown before reaggravating his quad.
“Yeah, it’s alright, I’m just trying to take it day by day, just monitoring it, it’s a little sore and everything,” McLaurin told reporters after the game. “I don’t know yet, really. So, I’m just going to continue to take it day by day and see how it feels in the morning. It’s hard to say what it is and what it isn’t, you know what I mean. I feel pretty good, but we’ll see how the week progresses.”
“It’s been a frustrating season for McLaurin and the Commanders,” Bryan Manning writes for Commanders Wire. “McLaurin was at odds with the team over a new contract and missed a lot of offseason work. When he did sign his new deal, it was less than two weeks before Week 1. McLaurin and Jayden Daniels have only played two games together this season due to injuries to both.”
How Seattle Matches Up Against Washington
The Seahawks are currently favored by 3.5 points, but they’re dealing with crucial injuries of their own, even coming off a bye week. Cornerback Devon Witherspoon is questionable with a knee injury, and safety Julian Love experienced a “setback” related to a hamstring injury today.
The 27-year-old suffered a setback with his hamstring and was unable to appear in Wednesday’s practice as a result. Macdonald has said that Seattle may be moving Love to IR ahead of the team’s Sunday Night Football matchup vs. the Washington Commanders in Week 9,” Patrick Hood writes for Field Gulls. “With Love’s condition getting worse, the Seahawks’ secondary will likely mean Ty Okada gets more playing time, having come off his best game of the season against the Houston Texans. Okada has started in every game Love has missed.”
Sunday Night Football could feature a battered Seahawks secondary facing off against a Commanders receiving corps missing its key cog. Both teams are all too familiar with this scenario, though. The Seahawks have struggled to maintain a healthy secondary all season, despite their 5-3 record.
Meanwhile, Bryan Manning adds, “Washington’s receivers have struggled with injuries all season and have had to rely on practice-squad elevations several times to have enough receivers for gameday.”
Even if Sunday Night Football is missing some stars, it’s a pivotal game for two NFC teams eyeing playoff runs.
Seahawks Get Massive Injury Update Before Sunday Night Football