The Seattle Seahawks enter Week 7 with a sparkling 5-1 record and very few flaws on their roster.
As if that wasn’t reason enough for Seahawks fans to be cheery, their biggest area of need is getting addressed in a big way this week with the return of defensive tackle Jarran Reed, who will be able to practice for the first time on Monday after serving his six-game suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.
“J. Reed coming back is a huge boost to us,” coach Pete Carroll said on 710 ESPN Radio Monday morning. “He’ll be a factor in the running game and the passing game as well as just the overall mentality. We’re getting better today and hopefully we can keep going.”
Reed emerged as an elite pass rusher last season, recording 10.5 sacks and 24 quarterback hits from an interior defensive line spot, numbers that Seattle could desperately use from a unit that wasn’t able to record a single sack or QB hit on Baker Mayfield and the below-average Browns offensive line on Sunday.
The Seahawks are clearly thrilled to get a Pro Bowl caliber player back in the middle of the season, but probably not as thrilled as Reed himself, who couldn’t wait to get back onto the field.
“He was up in the office this morning and he was like a little kid, it’s Christmas for him he’s so excited to be back,” Carroll continued. “It was so hard to just sit and watch and wait and all that. He said he couldn’t sleep last night and the whole thing. He was in real early today. Everyone wants him back.”
Reed may be acting like it’s Christmas morning, but the Seahawks are the ones getting a present. If Reed can play like he did last season, the Seahawks will strengthen one of their only areas of weakness as they continue to build toward a double-digit win season and a spot in the playoffs.
