Seahawks put RT Lucas on IR, likely LT Cross as well on Sunday

RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Seahawks are likely to be without both of their starting tackles on Sunday when they face the Detroit Lions in the noise of Ford Field.

The team placed right tackle Abraham Lucas on injured reserve Wednesday because of right knee soreness that bothered him in training camp and sidelined him in the second half of the season opener. Coach Pete Carroll, speaking to reporters before the team announced the move, said that both Lucas and left tackle Charles Cross were “hurt” and that it would be a challenge for either to play on Sunday.

Cross sprained his right big toe late in the third quarter of Week 1, forcing the Seahawks to finish their 30-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams with third-year backups Stone Forsythe and Jake Curhan at tackle. left and right, respectively.

Cross was listed as a non-participant in Wednesday’s practice. Meanwhile, safety Jamal Adams participated in his first practice since tearing his quadriceps tendon in last season’s opener and was limited. Rookie cornerback Devon Witherspoon (hamstring) was listed as a full participant. The Seahawks expect the fifth overall pick to make his NFL debut on Sunday after missing the opener.

The Seahawks signed 41-year-old Jason Peters to their practice squad on Tuesday. They also added a pair of tackles to their 53-man roster on Wednesday, signing Raiqwon O’Neal from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers practice squad and McClendon Curtis from the Las Vegas Raiders practice squad. Both are undrafted rookies. Seattle sees O’Neal at left tackle, while Curtis played left tackle and guard in college.

One of the most decorated tackles of the last two decades, Peters has made nine Pro Bowls and twice been named first-team All-Pro in his 19 NFL seasons.

“Twenty sounds better than 19, right?” Peters told reporters in the locker room Wednesday when she was asked why she wanted to continue playing. “Seattle’s got a good team, man. I feel like we can make the playoffs and make the Super Bowl, to be honest. They’re a good team. I watched them last year. Why not come for 20 and get a ring?”

Peters appeared in 12 games last season with the Dallas Cowboys with one start, playing 136 snaps at left tackle (his primary position throughout his career), as well as 52 at left guard and 33 at right tackle. ESPN’s pass blocking success rate for him at tackle was 85.7%. Peters didn’t play enough to qualify as a top-64 offensive tackle, but that mark would have ranked him 47th.

“I can still play,” Peters said. “If that wasn’t the case, I wouldn’t have come to get dressed. I still have some juice.”

Carroll called Peters a “remarkable player.”

“Look at his film from last year: You can’t tell how old he is,” Carroll said. “He played very well and played a couple different positions and showed flexibility there. He’s a long-term left tackle, but the flexibility is there and his feet moved beautifully… He looked pretty good today. I’ll just tell you he looked quick and light on his feet.”

But Carroll wasn’t ready to make any statements about how or when Peters might help the Seahawks, having only seen him on the morning walkaround when he spoke to reporters.

“We have to see how he is,” Carroll said. “You would think we would give him a couple of weeks to prepare. I don’t know if we can afford to do that. We’ll see what happens here as we take it one day at a time to work with him.” “He’s a really interesting guy and we’re lucky to have a guy like this come to us at a time like this.”

Peters was asked when he thinks he’ll be ready to play.

“Maybe this Sunday, maybe in a couple of weeks,” he said. “I just have to feel the pads. I haven’t used them since January, so it will take some time.”

Lucas has to spend at least four games on IR, meaning he’s not eligible to return until Week 7 against the Arizona Cardinals (Seattle has a bye in Week 5). Lucas, a third-round pick last year, ranked second among rookie tackles in PBWR. Cross, last year’s ninth overall pick, was ranked third.