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Brady HendersonESPN
RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Seahawks listed Kenneth Walker III as questionable for Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, but coach Pete Carroll said Thursday that the rookie running back is expected to play.
Running back DeeJay Dallas, tight end Noah Fant and wide receiver Marquise Goodwin are also expected to play despite their questionable game designations, per Carroll.
The Seahawks ruled out wide receiver Tyler Lockett, safety Ryan Neal and defensive tackle Al Woods.
Walker has been dealing with an ankle injury he suffered in the Seahawks’ Dec. 4 win over the Los Angeles Rams. He missed the next week and returned last Thursday night, playing 48 of 64 offensive snaps in a loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Carroll said Walker “should be ready to go” despite not practicing all week. He was also listed as having a back issue on Thursday, which Carroll described as minor.
Dallas, Seattle’s No. 2 running back, is returning from the high ankle sprain that has kept him out the past two games. Goodwin — who will elevate to the No. 2 receiver role behind DK Metcalf with Lockett out — was already dealing with a wrist injury before he turned his ankle in practice on Wednesday.
“Regular, lateral ankle sprain that should be OK,” Carroll said. “He says he’s playing and nothing is going to hold him out. So it wasn’t bad, but we just needed to rest him today.”
With Neal out, Carroll said Johnathan Abram and Teez Tabor will share time at strong safety. Abram, the 2019 first-round pick by the Raiders, has played only four defensive snaps in three games since Seattle claimed him off waivers.
“Johnathan’s done a lot of stuff in his years with the Raiders,” Carroll said. “He’s played up in the box, he’s been on the edge, he’s been in the back end, he’s been a blitzer, he’s been everything. So he brings a wide kind of expanse of what he can do. Teez is a little more classic. He’s been a cover guy in his career. He came up as a corner, so he has real good coverage skills and can do some good things there. So they’re real different in the way they play.”
The Seahawks are 10-point underdogs in what is expected to be one of the coldest games in franchise history, with the Kansas City forecast calling for temperatures in the teens on Saturday.
Lockett has remained in Los Angeles to begin rehab after having surgery to repair the broken bone in his hand on Monday, according to Carroll. He said earlier this week that there’s a chance Lockett will miss only one game. On Thursday, Carroll said it would be miraculous if Lockett returns next week, “but the doc down there is big-time, he’s pulled it off before and maybe he’s done it again.”