The Seattle Seahawks etched a win Week 1 over the Cincinnati Bengals without one of their expected key pieces of the defense.
Defensive end Ezekiel Ansah, who Seattle signed in March as a free agent, was inactive for Sunday’s matchup. Ansah had been listed as questionable to play on Friday’s injury report after practice.
Battling to recover from shoulder surgery all offseason, Ansah was sidelined in camp with a groin injury. He has just returned to full practice for the Seahawks.
“You could have asked about Ziggy, and he just wasn’t quite ready for this game,” coach Pete Carroll said after the win. “We are thinking long haul, and we’ll hope that next week will be the week. He practiced throughout the week, but just couldn’t quite get it right. So, you’ll be asking about it all next week, too. But, we’ll keep our fingers crossed that he can play next time.”
Seattle was fortunate another impactful player was able to make his debut in a Seahawks uniform. Pass rusher Jadeveon Clowney, who the team traded for just last week, finished the game logging more snap counts than anticipated, posting two combined tackles and a sack.
