NFL Spin Zone
Fansided

Seattle Seahawks Rumors: Marshawn Lynch expected to play vs. Panthers

By Kevin Parvizi

facebooktwitterreddit

Seattle Seahawks feature back Marshawn Lynch hasn’t played since carrying the ball just five times for 14 yards against the Chicago Bears in Week 3, making it the first time he’s missed multiple games in a single season since he appeared in 13 games as a member of the Buffalo Bills in the 2009 regular season. Since joining the Seahawks in 2010, Lynch’s only missed game prior to 2015 came in the 2011 season, so it’s safe to say that “Beast Mode” is one of the NFL’s most durable players.

ALSO ON SPIN ZONE: Could Pete Carroll become as great as these legendary Head Coaches?

Last night, the Seattle Times’s Bob Condotta reported that Lynch is expected to make his return this week to face the Carolina Panthers, who have allowed just 3.8 yards per carry despite missing the handsomely paid Luke Kuechly, who hasn’t played since recording seven tackles and a sack in Week 1. It’s unclear if Kuechly will be able to play in this marquee Week 6 matchup at CenturyLink, but the Charlotte Observer’s Jonathan Jones reported that the concussed middle linebacker was scheduled to meet with an independent doctor in the afternoon.

More from Seattle Seahawks

No further updates have been given, but the Panthers will still be a tough test for Lynch and the Seahawks ground attack even if Kuechly is absent for another week. After all, the Panthers are undefeated, and even though they haven’t faced a team as talented as the Seahawks are on paper, this game will be a more difficult encounter than the Seahawks-Panthers battle from last year’s playoffs.

There’s never a better time for someone as dominant and important as Marshawn Lynch to see the field, but the interesting thing is that he’s managed just 3.4 yards per carry this season, leading me to wonder if this hamstring injury has been hurting him ever since the season started. Based on the way Thomas Rawls has ran the football over the past three weeks, the Seahawks had no reason to rush Lynch back to the field, and they’ll have no reason to rush him into a full workload in Week 6 if he does indeed suit up to play.

We’ll have to hear more about Lynch’s status as the week progresses, but the arrow is  trending in the right direction for Lynch to make his return. As Condotta notes, fantasy owners need to be aware that Rawls isn’t simply going away, especially since his incredibly impressive 169-yard performance against the Cincinnati Bengals in a Week 5 losing effort represented the most rushing yards in a single game this season.

In fact, Rawls’s 5.6 yards per carry is the second-highest mark among 29 running backs with at least 50 carries so far this season, as only fellow- and more touted- rookie Todd Gurley of the St. Louis Rams has a higher clip.

It will be interesting to see how Lynch’s hamstring feels as the week progresses, but it is worth noting that head coach Pete Carroll said “eight or 10 carries on a regular game” is the desired workload for Rawls. The Christine Michael and Robert Turbin swap for Rawls and veteran pass-catching back Fred Jackson has paid huge dividends for the Seattle Seahawks, and, again, I wonder if this has allowed Carroll to exercise patience with Lynch’s nagging soft-tissue injury.

Whatever the case, Rawls has two 100-yard performances under his belt, and he is moving piles by racking up yards after contact. He may be a UDFA rookie, but it looks like he’s earned a role. If Lynch is healthy and back to his usual self, then the Panthers could be headed for their first loss, though Josh Norman and the secondary will likely have something to say about that, as they will face a Seahawks passing attack that is just 18th in net yards per pass attempt. The Panthers? They are at 4-0 and have the NFL’s fourth-best scoring defense with two times as many interceptions and passing touchdowns allowed.

Next: Where does Jimmy Graham rank among the best Tight Ends Ever?

More from NFL Spin Zone

Home/Seattle Seahawks