More than half of the Seahawks’ 2023 draft class is currently injured

There are high hopes that the Seattle Seahawks’ 2023 draft class would have the same positive impact as the Class of 2022. That remains to be seen, but it’s hard to match last year’s impact if you’re not able to practice or play.

Of the 10 drafted players, a half-dozen are no better than a walkthrough participant in practice due to injury. Three of them have yet to appear in preseason and unlikely won’t feature at all this month. I suppose the only good news is it doesn’t look like any of these injuries is super long-term, and we should see most of them available by Week 1.

Devon Witherspoon

Seattle’s top draft pick is at least close to returning to being a full practice participant, but on Tuesday he only did walkthroughs. The former Illinois cornerback has missed the whole of preseason and several practices with a hamstring injury, which is also something that hampered him prior to the NFL Draft.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba

By now you know that Seattle’s other, arguably higher profile first-round pick is facing surgery for a “slight fracture” on his left wrist after a big catch-and-run against the Dallas Cowboys last Saturday. Pete Carroll’s optimist timetable says 3-4 weeks, which puts the start of his regular season in doubt. Keep in mind that JSN’s collegiate career ended with a persistent hamstring injury, so now he’s beginning his pro career with a different injury.

Cameron Young

The fourth-round nose tackle out of Mississippi State hasn’t appeared in preseason due to a calf strain, and he’s still out for the Green Bay Packers preseason finale.

Mike Morris

Originally an edge rusher at Michigan, Morris was kicked to the inside by the Seahawks and he figured to be a key part of the rotation. However, after getting some run in the preseason opener against the Minnesota Vikings, Morris has been out of practice and won’t be practicing any time soon.

Morris’ return is TBD but it may be long-term. The shoulder problem dates back to college.

Olusegun Oluwatimi

The fifth-round center from Michigan didn’t play against the Dallas Cowboys due to an elbow injury, and he remains on the sidelines and unable to practice. It’s highly unlikely he’ll unseat Evan Brown for the starting job at this point.

Kenny McIntosh

The Georgia running back sprained his knee in the mock game earlier this month, which was probably one of the best case scenarios for him. Pete Carroll said he should be out for only a couple of weeks, but he’s not yet returned to practice.

This doesn’t even include Zach Charbonnet missing some bits of training camp and the preseason opener with a shoulder injury.

The good news is McIntosh, Oluwatimi, and Young should be positioned to be ready for the season opener. Unfortunately, we don’t definitively know the statuses of Witherspoon or Smith-Njigba, two of the rookies expected to contribute the most.