Seattle Seahawks’ fans knew that second-year inside linebacker Tyrice Knight was dealing with a knee injury that has limited him in training camp thus far. He didn’t play in the Hawks’ first preseason game against Las Vegas.
No biggie. None of the projected starters on defense played. (Unless you are counting Nick Emmanwori – which you should do.) However, after the game, head coach Mike Macdonald reported the troubling news that though Knight’s knee is making good progress, the 2024 fourth-round pick out of UTEP is now dealing with a separate undisclosed “medical issue."
The issue could keep him out for several more weeks. Macdonald said Knight is expected to be back in time for the season opener.
Can the Seattle Seahawks weather the loss of Tyrice Knight for an extended period?
Hopefully, that is true and Knight will be going full speed when Seattle hosts San Francisco on September 7. But “medical issue” and “several weeks” are the kind of vague terms that let doubt creep into the minds of fans.
First and foremost, Knight has to take care of himself. He is a young player with enormous potential, and rushing to return is in no one’s best interests.
His rookie season was supposed to be a year of learning. He would play behind Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson. When Baker pulled a hamstring in Week 2, Knight stepped right in and acquitted himself rather well over the next couple of games. Baker would later be traded for Ernest Jones.
Then, in early November, Seattle surprisingly released Dodson, turning the weakside linebacker job over the Knight. Once again, he stepped right in, playing next to Jones in the revamped defense. Together, the two new linebackers helped engineer major improvements in the second half of the season.
Seattle made a point of retaining Jones this offseason, figuring to continue pairing him with Knight. That remains the plan, though Knight’s availability is now in question.
If Knight’s recovery takes longer than expected, Seattle is likely to turn first to Drake Thomas. Thomas and Patrick O’Connell started at linebacker against the Raiders and played most of the first half. Thomas remained in the game for three quarters. O’Connell gave way to D’Eryk Jackson late in the second quarter.
In the fourth quarter, it was Jackson and Michael Dowell in the middle. Seth Coleman got a few snaps late, but he lined up on the edge.
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Thomas and O’Connell looked very good. It was O’Connell who mostly lined up in Knight’s weakside spot, with Thomas playing the middle linebacker role that Jones typically handles. That might suggest that O’Connell would be the first man up if Knight misses time. But I suspect Macdonald will favor Thomas.
The two linebacker roles are largely interchangeable. First and foremost, they need to be sound tacklers, and I would give Thomas a slight edge there. He diagnosed developing plays very well and made several good tackles in the hole. Early on, he made a solid play against the Raiders' rookie Ashton Jeanty and was credited with five tackles for the game.
O’Connell did not have the numbers to show for his effort, but he was also usually in the right place at the right time. He got beaten a couple of times in coverage – once on a deep seam to tight end Ian Thomas and later on a swing pass to running back Dylan Laube that resulted in a touchdown. However, the third-year UDFA from Montana made several nice drops in coverage on other plays.
In all, both primary backups looked comfortable on the field, with Thomas seeming better able to make plays.
After them, Jackson, who arrived in May, and Dowell, who arrived barely a week ago, looked shakier. Both are good athletes, as is Josh Ross, who did not play against the Raiders, but will need a lot of time to develop. Assuming Knight’s condition is not too serious, those players seem like practice squad candidates.
Not so for Thomas and O’Connell. Thomas, who was initially signed as a UDFA by the Raiders in 2023, is entering his third season with Seattle. He has logged just 41 total defensive snaps in that time. We may soon see whether he is ready to step into a starting role, however briefly.
One of the things Thomas, or O’Connell, or perhaps some as-yet unknown player will have going for him should he be pressed into service is the defense he will be joining. It starts at the top with Macdonald, who has a history of developing linebackers. Playing alongside Ernest Jones will make the transition easier.
And as we saw in the Raiders’ game, Seattle has a plethora of playmakers on defense, even amongst the backups. Indeed, it was hard to evaluate the linebackers on some plays because the big guys up front, the edges, and the safeties were all making plays at the line of scrimmage.
That won’t always be the case. Come September 7, if Tyrice Knight isn’t ready to play, Drake Thomas, or some other backup, will be lined up against the likes of Christian McCaffery and George Kittle. Then we will get an excellent read on what kind of depth the Seahawks have behind Knight.
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