Getty Seahawks corner Quinton Dunbar is dealing with a chronic knee injury.
Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll revealed cornerback Quinton Dunbar is expected to miss the rest of the season following a knee procedure. Dunbar started six games opposite Shaquill Griffin but has been sidelined since Week 9. Earlier this season, Carroll admitted Dunbar was dealing with a “chronic” knee injury.
“Quinton Dunbar (knee) will stay on injured reserve and have his ‘knee fixed’ in the near future, Pete says. Dunbar’s season is done,” The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar noted on Twitter.
Dunbar’s tenure with the Seahawks has been a rollercoaster since Seattle acquired the corner from Washington. He spent a good portion of the offseason dealing with a legal investigation before a robbery case was dismissed. Dunbar has struggled to stay on the field this season and was exposed in coverage against the Bills the last time he played. Carroll originally indicated Dunbar would only have a short stint on injured reserve but the corner’s status clearly took a turn for the worse.
“We hope another week will be enough to get him back,” Carroll noted on November 20, per Seahawks.com. “He’ll be week-to-week. He has to sit out this week coming up, then he could be one of the guys to come back off the three-week IR.”
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Carroll Previously Noted the Seahawks Were Trying to ‘Figure Out’ How to Utilize Dunbar
It remains to be seen whether Dunbar has played his final game with the Seahawks. The corner is a free agent this offseason and his play had been inconsistent prior to being shut down for the rest of 2020. Carroll admitted earlier this season that Dunbar played with a different style than the Seahawks corners typically do and the team was exploring how to best utilize his skill set.
“[Dunbar is] really a guy who plays on feel and a different style than just a straight, on-the-line-of-scrimmage press guy,” Carroll explained, per The News Tribune. “That’s not been the way he plays. So as we learn him and adapt [to] him we are trying to figure out how to best position him. Sometimes, he is coming up with some stuff that it’s farther off than we would see fit.”
Here is a look at Carroll discussing the latest update on Dunbar’s status.
Reed Has Played Well in Dunbar’s Absence
The good news for the Seahawks is D.J. Reed has played well in Dunbar’s absence since coming off injured reserve. Reed has started six games this season making his impact felt with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. After Reed’s play against Washington, Carroll explained the corner’s edge reminded him of former Seahawks receiver Doug Baldwin.
“He has tremendous instincts and he continues to show us all of the things he can do,” Carroll told ESPN 710 Seattle. “He had a really, really good game yesterday, and I’m really fired up about him. …Coming off this game, this was as good of a game a corner has played in a while for us and he deserves to keep playing, and that’s all,”
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