Seahawks safety Marquise Blair suffered what Pete Carroll called "a significant" knee injury in Monday's game against the Saints, and two days later, Carroll confirmed that Blair will undergo surgery to repair a fractured patella and miss the remainder of the season.
"He's getting operated on today, I believe, today or tomorrow," Carroll said. "It's a good surgery to get his knee fixed, he's got a fractured patella."
Carroll said the injury was to Blair's patella, or kneecap, and not his patellar tendon. This is the second straight year Blair has had his season cut short by a knee injury, having torn his ACL in Week 2 of the 2020 season. With Blair out, Ugo Amadi will take over the nickel role full time after the two had split playing time there through the first seven games this season.
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Carroll also gave an update on rookie receiver Dee Eskridge, who has been out since suffering a concussion in the season opener. Eskridge has been away from the team recently in Florida to participate in what Carroll called a visual training program to address some issues that have come up since the concussion. Eskridge will be back in Seattle tonight and could return to practice soon.
"He's flying in tonight," Carroll said. "He had a big training in rehab program that he went through in Florida that we thought was necessary. The reports coming out are that he's in great shape and ready to go; I don't know what that means until we get on the field. If he's cleared tomorrow, then we'll start to get some work from him. And I can't tell you what that means."
Asked about the specific issues, Carroll said, "He did have some issues from the concussion that he had, some visual things that he was working on and that's what he's been focusing on." Carroll later explained, "it's a visual training program that was really specialized for his situation that we wanted to take full advantage of."
The Seahawks are hoping to get a couple of players back from injury this week with defensive end Darrell Taylor and left guard Damien Lewis both trending in the right direction after missing Monday's game.
"The early indications is Darrell is really ready to get back in," Carroll said. "Damien, that's the way they're talking, they're really counting on him making it back to play, which is a nice boost for us."
Less clear is the status of right tackle Brandon Shell, who left Monday's game with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter.
"He's a little sore," Carroll said. "His ankle is a little sore. Both ankles were a little off, so we just need to see what the next couple of days means. He's getting around fine and all that, he's not hobbled by it, but we've just got to give him a chance to recover."
Go behind the scenes with team photographer Rod Mar as he shares moments from the Seattle Seahawks' 13-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football on October 25, 2021 at Lumen Field. Eye On The Hawks is presented by Western Washington Toyota Dealers.
Seahawks captain Bobby Wagner walks through the tunnel as he is introduced during pregame ceremonies.
Quarterback Geno Smith warms up before the game.
Defensive back D.J. Reed warms up.
Carlos Dunlap poses on the field hours before kickoff.
Former Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck appears on the Monday Night Football set before being inducted into the Seahawks Ring of Honor at halftime.
Seahwaks veteran leaders Bobby Wagner and Duane Brown emerge from the locker room for pregame warmups.
Head coach Pete Carroll and injured quarterback Russell Wilson chat on the field during pregame.
Seahawks safety Ryan Neal is focused before the game.
Seahawks defensive end Carlos Dunlap fires up the d-line during pregame.
Members of the military hold the American flag during the singing of the national anthem.
Military helicopters perform a flyover at the conclusion of the national anthem.
Early in the game, Seahawks Jordyn Brooks and Rasheem Green make a tackle.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith fires a pass up the right side to DK Metcalf who scores on the long play.
Seahawk receiver DK Metcalf catches a pass and raced to the end zone for an early touchdown.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith scrambles in the first half.
The Seahawks Dancers braved the wind and rain to perform between quarters.
Michael Dickson punts during the second quarter.
This 12 was ready for rain, cold and wore sunglasses just in case.
Fans urge injured quarterback Russell Wilson a speedy recovery from injury.
12s stood fast in the stormy weather at Lumen Field on Monday Night.
Matt Hasselbeck's name is added to the Seahawks Ring of Honor at halftime.
Former Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck addresses the crowd during his induction to the team's Ring of Honor at halftime.
Seahawks fans "light up" Lumen Field with lights from their mobile phones during a break in the action.
Receiver Freddie Swain gains yards as the Seahawks tried to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter.
Seahawks Duane Brown and Geno Smith walk off the field after the Saints took over on downs late in the game.
Seahawks receiver Tyler Lockett sits alone of the team's bench at the end of the game.
