Ken Walker III, Jerome Baker doubtful for Seattle Seahawks against Dolphins
RENTON, Wash. - Running back Ken Walker III and linebacker Jerome Baker are both unlikely to play for the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins.
Walker (oblique) and Baker (hamstring) were both listed as doubtful to play by the team on Friday. Walker would miss a second straight game for the Seahawks. Meanwhile, Baker would miss the chance to face his former team in the Dolphins.
"Progress," Macdonald said of Walker, who returned to limited participation in practice on Friday. "You know, not looking great right now for the game with with Ken Walker, but working his tail off. Getting better."
Macdonald did say he was "very optimistic" that Walker will have a chance to return next week.
Baker has been dealing with an ongoing hamstring issue since back in training camp. It forced him out of last week's game in New England with Tyrice Knight taking over at Baker's spot in the lineup.
"Bake's working his butt off," Macdonald said. "Tried to really give it a go. Kind of doesn't look good right now. So everything's going well, just probably not good enough at this point."
Knight played 44 defensive snaps in place of Baker last week and would be the presumptive starter on Sunday against the Dolphins.
"We told him you're not allowed to be a rookie anymore," Macdonald said. "You can't make rookie mistakes. Poised, but be handles that in stride so he's doing a great job. You'll see the combinations that we'll play out there if Bake doesn't make it."
Knight said he's ready for the chance if it comes his way.
"Overall, I feel like I had a good, excellent week this week going through Miami film from top to bottom, just going through all their plays. So I feel like I'm as prepared as I can be," Knight said.
Linebacker Uchenna Nwosu will miss a third straight game due to an MCL sprain sustained in the preseason finale last month. He's the only player officially ruled out by Seattle. Right tackle George Fant was initially listed as doubtful, but was downgraded to out after practice on Friday. He injured his knee in the season opener against the Denver Broncos.
Walker's absence would put Zach Charbonnet back into the starting role for the Seahawks for a second straight week. Charbonnet played all but three snaps offensively for Seattle last week in their win over the New England Patriots. He managed just 38 yards on 14 carries while also catching five passes for 31 yards.
Kenny McIntosh played just two offensive snaps last week, but would be the backup again for Charbonnet.
"I expect the best version of him if he's out there," Macdonald said of McIntosh. "But you talk about process over results, and that's the message been to Kenny since we got here, just keep focusing on all the things you need to handle pre-snap so you can go play as fast as possible and the results, the rest will take care of itself."
An additional problem for Seattle is that practice squad running back George Holani injured his ankle last week in the game against New England on a punt return. Holani was called up from the practice squad for additional depth with Walker out, but it seems unlikely he will be able to do so this week. That could mean Brittain Brown would come up as the third running back instead.
Five players are listed as questionable on the final report: safety K'Von Wallace (shoulder), tight end Pharaoh Brown (foot), linebacker Boye Mafe (knee), linebacker Derick Hall (hip) and wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. (foot).
Macdonald said he's optimistic that Wallace and Shenault will play, and Mafe is "trending positively."
Mafe sustained a knee contusion last week against New England, but has been among the league's most productive pass rushers through two weeks of the season.
"I think he's just playing really fast and playing decisive and doing things he does well and then having his changeups off of it," Macdonald said of Mafe. "Having to play the rush on early downs for the most part doing a great job. There's some plays I know we kid about that he could finish a little better and his stat line might reflect that, but playing really good football for us.
"We're playing a really good team this week with a quarterback that can move around, so we're going to need him."
Nose tackle Jarran Reed (knee), tight end Brady Russell (shoulder), defensive end Leonard Williams (knee/shin), wide receiver Tyler Lockett (thigh), cornerback Devon Witherspoon (hamstring), wide receiver DK Metcalf (hand), linebacker Tyrel Dodson (shoulder), guard Anthony Bradford (knee), and tight end Noah Fant (toe), all appeared on the injury report throughout the week as well, but all are expected to play against Miami.
Injury Report:
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