Will Seahawks’ Malik McDowell miss rookie season? ‘Danny, Dave and Moore’ say it’s seeming more likely
Aug 8, 2017, 2:04 PM | Updated: 2:11 pm
DT Malik McDowell was a highly-touted prospect coming out of Michigan State last year. (AP)
(AP)
The details surrounding Seahawks rookie defensive tackle Malik McDowell’s injuries from an offseason ATV accident continue to be murky, but one thing that has been all too clear since the announcement is that the situation is serious.
When asked about the status of Seattle’s top pick Monday, head coach Pete Carroll said that McDowell would be out “quite a while.” And though the team does not believe his injuries are career-threatening, Carroll could not guarantee he will play this season.
“(McDowell’s presence) sure is something I was excited to see,” said Dave Wyman of “Danny, Dave and Moore” on Monday in reaction to the latest news on McDowell. “One of the things they wanted to do was get more creative, good pass rush up the middle, which they don’t really have right now, and that’s what you were going to get from Malik McDowell.”
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McDowell’s versatility and 3-technique skill set drew high praise from Carroll and Seahawks general manager John Schneider before his accident. As Seahawks training camp has progressed, however, the tone surrounding McDowell’s accident – which left him with a concussion and facial injuries – has overshadowed the conversation about any role he might play in the Seahawks’ pass rush.
“The more you start to think about it,” Wyman said when talking about the initial announcement, “the more you start to think it was really serious. There was 10 or 15 percent of me that thought maybe he doesn’t ever play football again. And then probably 60 percent was he’s probably not going to play this year, the further it went. Just because it seemed awfully odd, right?
“I mean, reporting to camp is a huge deal. You do not miss practice; you don’t not show up. It’s a big thing. And the fact that he wasn’t here, it just became pretty apparent that it was serious. … You really hope for the kid, that he’s safe and going to be OK.”
McDowell, who visited the Seahawks headquarters on Aug. 1 to be evaluated by team doctors, has since returned to his home in Michigan. If he begins the season on the Non-Football Injury List, and all indications are that he will, he will be eligible to practice with the team after Week 6. However, it appears more and more likely that the rookie could miss the entirety of his first year with Seattle.
“We’re just left to speculate,” Jim Moore said. “But if you’re trying to find out what Pete Carroll is telling you there, it sounds like he’s not quite sure himself. But clearly not going to be there for the opener, and that one sounds like half a season anyway to me, the way Pete’s talking.”
