Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny out for season, Pete Carroll confirms
Oct 10, 2022, 11:16 AM
Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny runs the ball against the New Orleans Saints on Oct. 9, 2022. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
The worst fear for the Seahawks after their loss to the Saints on Sunday has unfortunately come true. Running back Rashaad Penny will miss the rest of the season due to a broken left leg that will require surgery, head coach Pete Carroll confirmed Monday morning on Seattle Sports.
Rost: Hawks’ D can’t figure out how to slow down onslaught
Penny, 26, left the 39-32 defeat in New Orleans on a cart after suffering the injury. Carroll categorized it as a “tib-fib incident,” meaning it impacts both his tibia and fibula bones.
“It’s gonna be a haul for him,” Carroll said. “… He broke his fibula and cracked that, but it’s the high-ankle sprain element of it that makes it difficult. There’s this particular surgery that they do to connect, tighten down those bones. It’s going to take a number of months so he’s gonna miss the season.”
The injury really is a tough reality for both Penny and the Seahawks. Seattle selected him in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of San Diego State, but he struggled at first both to produce and then to stay off of injured reserve. It wasn’t until the final stretch of the 2021 season that Penny began to realize his potential, rushing for 135 yards or more in four of the Hawks’ last five games to be the NFL’s most productive back over that period.
The Seahawks re-signed Penny this offseason and he served as Seattle’s lead back in the first five games. He’s rushed for 346 yards on 57 carries (6.07 yards per attempt) in 2022, including a 151-yard effort on Oct. 2 in a win over Detroit.
“It’s really a heartbreaker for a kid that has really bounced back into the limelight of our program,” Carroll said. “He’s been through such a long haul. It’s really just a heartbreaking loss for him.”
The Seahawks will likely now turn to rookie Kenneth Walker III, a second-round pick from Michigan State, as their top back. Walker had his best game as a pro Sunday, rushing for 88 yards on eight carries, including a 69-yard touchdown.
The Pete Carroll Show airs at 9:30 a.m. the morning after every Seahawks game on Seattle Sports 710 AM, serving as the final segment of Brock and Salk. Listen to this week’s edition at this link or in the player below.
Seahawks Instant Reaction: Seattle Sports on 39-32 loss to Saints
