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Brady HendersonESPN
SEATTLE — Seahawks starting left guard Damien Lewis left Lumen Field on the back of an injury cart after suffering a lateral ankle sprain during Thursday night’s 27-11 preseason loss to the Chicago Bears.
Head coach Pete Carroll said X-rays came back negative, adding, “We’re very, very fortunate there.”
“He was upbeat about that,” Carroll said. “Maybe surprised by the results, but we’re thrilled by it as well.”
Carroll said he doesn’t know yet if Lewis will be available for Seattle’s Sept. 12 opener against the Denver Broncos.
Lewis went down in the second quarter when defensive lineman Angelo Blackson accidentally rolled up on him from behind while tackling DeeJay Dallas. Lewis’ right leg was placed in an air cast as he was carted off the field, and he was ruled out for the rest of the game.
A third-round pick out of LSU in 2020, Lewis was a returning starter on an offensive line that added left tackle Charles Cross in the draft with the ninth overall pick as well as center Austin Blythe in free agency. Seattle also drafted Abe Lucas in the third round to compete at right tackle. Lewis had drawn a strong review from Carroll earlier this summer. He was preparing for his third season as a starter and his second at left guard after playing right guard as a rookie.
Phil Haynes replaced Lewis on Thursday night. Carroll said earlier in training camp that Haynes was having a strong enough summer to “push” veteran Gabe Jackson on the right side, and that Haynes gave them what Carroll considered three starting-caliber guards.
Carroll said quarterback Geno Smith, who has been ahead of Drew Lock in the battle to replace Russell Wilson, suffered a right knee bruise on a first-quarter scramble and could have played into the third quarter if needed. Smith watched much of the second half with an ice wrap on his knee.
With Lock sidelined with COVID-19 for what would have been his first start of the summer, Smith played the entire first half and finished 10-of-18 for 112 yards.
The six full drives Smith led, not counting a final possession in the closing seconds of the half, ended with five punts and a missed 47-yard field goal. Three of Smith’s incompletions were drops, an issue for the second week in a row.
“He did OK,” Carroll said. “We needed to come through. We needed to help him a little bit. We needed to make the plays around him, but we missed the block on the screen, and we missed the third-down conversion, and there’s another one there. He’s running the show well. He’s doing OK. He got out of the pocket when he needed to and threw a couple really good balls that could have been converted. We’ve got to come through for him. Our receivers have got to make the plays for him.”
Seattle planned to start Lock on Thursday night, but he tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday after feeling unwell during practice. Carroll said Lock was still “really sick” as of Thursday morning and that no decision has been made on a starter for Seattle’s preseason finale at Dallas next Friday.
“It’s disappointing he didn’t get a chance to play tonight,” Carroll said. “We had a different plan for this night and we weren’t able to execute it. Couldn’t do anything about it. That’s why I’m still curious to see how he plays with us. Yeah, I am. He’s done enough good things. He’s got some real stuff to him and some real exciting ability and playmaking stuff that you will see when he does get his chances eventually. Just disappointed we didn’t get to see more of it tonight.”