Carroll: Seahawks will ‘wait and see’ with Lynch
Sep 5, 2012, 2:03 PM | Updated: 7:57 pm
By 710Sports.com staff
Coach Pete Carroll said Wednesday that the Seahawks likely won’t know until later this week whether running back Marshawn Lynch will be available for Sunday’s regular-season opener at Arizona.
Lynch has been dealing with back spasms that kept him from practicing the last two weeks. Carroll said Lynch “looked pretty good” during a walk-through on Wednesday and that he will take it easy during the afternoon practice.
 Marshawn Lynch |
Carroll, addressing the media during his regularly-scheduled press conference, confirmed a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter that said the Seahawks aren’t sure whether Lynch will be able to play Sunday.
“We’ll have to take him day by day and see how he responds to the work,” Carroll said, “and we really won’t know until the end of the week unless something changes.”
Lynch has dealt with back spasms for much of his career, and the Seahawks were aware of the condition when they traded for Lynch in 2010. Last season, back spasms sidelined Lynch shortly before Seattle’s 6-3 loss to Cleveland. They flared up again following the Seahawks’ second exhibition game, forcing Lynch to miss the final two games and two weeks of practice.
Carroll said Lynch is in “good shape” conditioning-wise but that he needs to get in football shape, which will come with more practice time.
Lynch rushed for more than 1,200 yards and became the identity of Seattle’s offense last season, so his availability for Sunday’s season opener is as big a story as any for the Seahawks.
“We’ll just have to wait and see,” Carroll said. “I can’t call it for you now.”
Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt told local reporters earlier Wednesday that Arizona is expecting Lynch to play.
Lynch was asked whether he thinks he will play.
“The goal is to,” he said. “But I stay ready. If I do, I do, and if I don’t, I don’t.”
