The next evaluation checkpoint for Seattle Seahawks right tackle Abraham Lucas’ return to the field will be during the team’s bye week, head coach Mike Macdonald said on Monday.
Lucas returned to practice last week after a 10-month recovery that included knee surgery during the offseason. He played in just six games in 2023 after starting 16 of 17 games for the Seahawks as a rookie in 2022.
“The first time you’re doing these things coming back from an injury there’s going to be a little bit of a leap of faith,” Macdonald said. “We expect him to make a pretty healthy jump this week — excited about his progress. We’re on pace for kind of making a decision where we’re at during and after the bye [week]."
Seattle’s Week 9 home game versus the Los Angeles Rams will be its final contest before the bye week. If Lucas were to return after the bye, he would make his season debut on the road against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 11.
The Seahawks have already lost to the Niners once this season, dropping their home game against their bitter division rivals 36-24 on Oct. 10. That also sunk Seattle to its third straight loss, though the team bounced back to handily defeat the Atlanta Falcons the following week, 34-14.
Since then, Seattle lost its fourth of five games to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, the team’s worst overall performance of the season.
Lucas, if healthy and effective as he was in 2022, would be a stabilizing force for Seattle’s offensive line. The team has been forced to cycle through five different right tackles since Lucas’ injury, including three different players this season alone.
Along with Lucas, veteran tackle George Fant also had his 21-day practice window opened on Oct. 23. Fant was supposed to be the replacement to begin the season during Lucas’ recovery, but he sustained a knee injury in Seattle’s season opener and was later placed on injured reserve.
“We’re still figuring out George’s situation,” Macdonald added. “But, right now, the plan is with Michael Jerrell, and then we’ll see where George ends up by the end of the week.”
Jerrell, a rookie sixth-round pick out of NCAA Division II University of Findlay, has started the last two games at right tackle for the Seahawks after Stone Forsythe — the replacement to the replacement — suffered a hand injury versus San Francisco. He, too, was placed on injured reserve.
Though he’s far from polished, Macdonald has been satisfied with Jerrell’s pair of performances.
“It’s tough coming off the game [against Buffalo] being super excited about anybody. But, if you’re looking for positives, I think [Jerrell is] really playing hard for us right now,” Macdonald said. “He missed a couple of plays, as with the rest of the offense, but [the] guy’s playing really hard. I thought he played a sound football game.”
Still, Lucas’ return would be a long-awaited boost for Seattle. The concern is whether he can stay healthy, or if his knee will continue to be a career-long issue for the third-year tackle out of Washington State.
A return against the 49ers would be a challenge, but it also could be perfect timing for an offensive line that needs all the help it can get after the Seahawks dropped to 4-4 overall and third place in the NFC West on Sunday.
