BRADY HENDERSON

Seahawks’ Pete Carroll says he may have erred in not revealing Richard Sherman’s injury

Jan 16, 2017, 6:05 PM | Updated: Jan 17, 2017, 11:02 am

Pete Carroll disclosed Monday for the first time that Richard Sherman had a knee injury this season...

Pete Carroll disclosed Monday for the first time that Richard Sherman had a knee injury this season. (AP)

(AP)

RENTON – Seahawks coach Pete Carroll shared some news when he revealed to “Brock and Salk” Monday morning that cornerback Richard Sherman played through a knee injury in the second half of Seattle’s season. That injury was never listed on the Seahawks’ practice reports, which Carroll said later Monday may have been a mistake on his part given how NFL rules mandate that teams disclose injuries.

“Honestly, I didn’t realize we hadn’t revealed it,” Carroll said during his end-of-season press conference. “I don’t even remember what game it was. It was somewhere in the middle … I don’t know. He was fine about it. He didn’t miss anything. The same with Russell (Wilson), he was fine about it. I don’t know how they do that, but they did.”

An NFL Network report on Tuesday stated that the league is looking into the matter.

Carroll told “Brock and Salk” that the injury was to Sherman’s MCL, the same ligament that Wilson hurt in Week 3. The Seahawks began listing Sherman on their practice report and giving him one day off each week after their overtime game in Arizona in Week 7, when he played 99 snaps and was in bad shape afterward. His absence was listed as not injury-related, which is often the designation used for veterans who receive regular days off for maintenance purposes. Sherman sat out one practice in Week 12 with what was listed as an ankle injury, but the practice reports never cited his knee.

Sherman didn’t miss any games and never more than one practice in a single week.

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“I don’t know,” Carroll said when asked why Sherman’s knee injury was never listed on the practice report. “I’m feeling like I screwed that up with not telling you that because that happened, but he was OK. So I don’t know. He never missed anything, which is probably why.”

The NFL’s Injury Report Policy reads in part: “All players who have significant or noteworthy injuries must be listed on the Practice Report, even if the player takes all the reps in practice, and even if the team is certain that he will play in the upcoming game.”

Carroll used the words “significant” and “legit” to describe Sherman’s knee injury on Monday. He said it won’t require surgery.

There’s precedent for the NFL reprimanding teams for failing to disclose injuries: In 2009, the league fined the Jets $125,000 for not including quarterback Brett Favre on the injury report while he was playing with a torn biceps, according to this Associated Press story.

More injury notes from Carroll’s press conference:

• Carroll said cornerback DeShawn Shead’s knee injury involved more than just his ACL, but he didn’t specify nor did he even call it a torn ACL. A report from the NFL Network said it is indeed torn, which was the team’s fear once Shead went down in the second half on Saturday in Atlanta. “There’s some other stuff, some other things that did go on but I can’t tell you the specifics of it,” Carroll said. “It was a significant ACL injury with some of the other things that normally happen.”

• Carroll said wide receiver Tyler Lockett and free safety Earl Thomas still look like they’ll be recovered in time from their broken legs to make it back by the start of next season. “They should make it now,” Carroll said. “The docs said that they’re going to make it, it’s just going to take a few months here in the offseason. Tyler has really jumped in the early stages of return and so both those guys are phenomenal athletes and great competitive guys about doing stuff. They have to do their work of course, but it’s a little different. Once the bone is healed, they’re in pretty good shape. It’s not like ligaments and all the rest of the stuff that have to be re-established. So they have a really good chance of returning, yes.”

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Seahawks’ Pete Carroll says he may have erred in not revealing Richard Sherman’s injury