Mike Macdonald provides injury updates on key Seattle Seahawks heading into bye week

With the bye week coming up for the Seattle Seahawks, head coach Mike Macdonald gave a few injury updates for players, including a few names we have not seen or heard from in a while.

Starting defenders Derick Hall, Devon Witherspoon, and Julian Love all should be back after the bye, according to coach Macdonald. As for the names we have not seen or heard from in a while, let’s start with the not so good news. Macdonald stated that defensive tackle, Johnathan Hankins will not be back after the bye week. Hankins was placed on the non-football injury list at the beginning of training camp this past July. Hankins was re-signed by the Seahawks this offseason after playing all 17 games for the Seahawks as the primary nose tackle in 2024. The Seahawks will likely not be in a rush to get Hankins back as Brandon Pili and Quinton Bohana have been playing well in his absence.

In better news, Macdonald also mentioned that guard Christian Haynes may be back after the bye. When asked, he stated “we’ll see.” That statement does not necessarily signal a definite return, but it at least sounds a little more optimistic than his response for Hankins. The second year player was beaten out this training camp by Anthony Bradford for the starting right guard position, He was subsequently placed on injured reserve to start the season. Though a potential Haynes return won’t excite the masses, adding some depth on the interior offensive line could be good as the Seahawks are quite thin at the position as it stands.

Other good news is surrounding rookie defensive tackle, Rylie Mills. Coach Macdonald stated that Mills is likely 4-6 weeks away from returning. This would put him in line to come back around Week 12-14. Mills, a 5th round pick out of Notre Dame was considered to be a day two talent who fell in the draft due to his ACL injury he suffered late in the 2024 college football season. When healthy Mills looks to factor in as a depth piece on the already stout defensive line.

The best news coming out of Tuesday’s long-term injury updates is for fullback, Robbie Ouzts, who is expected to be back at practice after the bye. The rookie fullback was placed on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury in the week 3 victory against the New Orleans Saints. Brady Russell has been filling in for Ouzts at fullback, however, the run game since Ouzts has been hurt has not looked the same. Surely, the Seahawks and 12s will be excited to see the big fullback back in the fold here soon. For Ouzts to return to practice, the Seahawks will have to open a 21-day window for him. This window allows Ouzts to practice with the team without counting against the 53-man roster. After this window expires, Seattle then will need to add Ouzts to the 53-man roster or shut him down for the season. With coach Macdonald’s recent statements, it sounds like Ouzts is only a few weeks away (if not sooner) from suiting up again.

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