Surgeries for WR Doug Baldwin highlights toll of Seahawks’ Super Bowl years

Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin is facing possible surgery for a sports hernia, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. The procedure would be in addition to the knee and shoulder surgeries Baldwin has already undergone this offseason. The news has 710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock Huard wondering whether Seattle’s stretch of postseason success brought quicker wear-and-tear for its older starters.

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In an interview airing Friday morning on 710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock and Salk, Garafolo said that after an injury-plagued 2018 season, the 30-year-old Baldwin may consider stepping away from the game.

“It sounds like there could be a sports hernia surgery in his future,” Garafolo told Huard and co-host Mike Salk. “And that in and of itself, isolated, it’s nothing that would threaten the start of the season usually. But now you’re getting to the point where Doug Baldwin’s got a lot of wear and tear on his body, there’s been some talk behind the scenes with him and some people close to him about potentially retiring. It doesn’t sound like he’s made a decision, but it sounds like it’s something that’s at least on the table for him. And how much does he want to put his body through? He’s made a lot of money in his career, he’s won a ring. Does he want to continue to do this?”

Huard, a former NFL quarterback, says time adds up quickly in the league – especially for successful players.

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“I remember when I was with the Colts, we had a coach who looked a lot older than he was, because he’s lived a bunch of twofers,” Huard said. “He’s lived two years in one. And I think with some of these Seahawks players, I think we’ve got to start looking at their careers a little differently. That when you go to back-to-back Super Bowls, and you went to playoff after playoff after playoff, and you look at the number of games that you’ve played – extra games that push into February and shorten an offseason – then maybe not a surprise that Kam Chancellor, that Cliff Avril, that Doug Baldwin, that Marshawn Lynch, their bodies broke down a little bit quicker. With all of the football, especially the postseason football, those guys played, that’s bad news.”

Baldwin has played all of his eight NFL seasons with Seattle, and led the Seahawks in receiving yards in all but three. He has made 13 postseason appearances, where he’s recorded a combined 734 yards and six touchdowns.

Listen to Brock and Salk’s full interview with Garafolo on Friday (7-10 a.m.)