Brandon Shell Likely Out For Rest of 2021, Jon Rhattigan to Undergo ACL Surgery

A surprisingly stellar rookie campaign is officially over for Rhattigan, while Shell may have played his final game in a Seahawks uniform as he heads towards free agency.

As the Seahawks wrap up preparations for their 2021 home finale against the Lions on Sunday, coach Pete Carroll announced linebacker Jon Rhattigan will undergo season-ending ACL surgery and right tackle Brandon Shell likely will miss the rest of the year with a lingering shoulder injury.

Rhattigan, an undrafted rookie out of Army, missed most of training camp with a hamstring injury and only appeared in one preseason game. But after being waived during final roster cuts, Seattle re-signed him to the practice squad and quickly found his way onto the 53-man roster as a key special teams player.

Appearing in 14 games, Rhattigan played 250 special teams snaps, registering 10 tackles and recovering a fumble. He injured his knee on kick coverage against the Rams in Week 15 and has yet to be placed on injured reserve.

"Jon's gotta get his knee fixed and it's an ACL injury," Carroll said. "So we'll have to take care of him. It's gonna be a while."

Shell, who joined the Seahawks as a free agent prior to the 2020 season, has been dealing with an undisclosed shoulder ailment for most of the second half. He hasn't played since exiting late in a Week 13 win over the 49ers, spending a short time on the reserve/COVID-19 list while trying to rehab his injury, and was listed as doubtful on Friday's final injury report.

When asked if Shell would be able to play again this season, Carroll indicated Seattle would likely not rush him back with the injury not improving as the team and player hoped it would. With him sidelined, rookie Jake Curhan will remain in the lineup at right tackle after starting each of the past three games.

"He's got some questions to get answered before he comes back and plays another game," Carroll explained. "We're looking to take care of him making sure we don't rush him back for a game or two here. He's really worked hard to get back and hasn't been able to get over the hump on it, so it's looking like - he's getting second and third opinions on it - it doesn't look like it's going to potentially happen in the next week."

Set to become an unrestricted free agent in March, it's possible Shell may have played his final game in a Seahawks uniform and surgery remains on the table.

In other injury news, Carroll said starting defensive tackle Poona Ford made it through concussion protocol and will be available to play on Sunday. While he didn't definitively confirm whether or not L.J. Collier, D.J. Reed, or Bryan Mone would play, he sounded optimistic players returning from the COVID-19 list this week would be able to suit up against Detroit.

As for guard Damien Lewis and cornerback Bless Austin, the two players still remaining on the COVID-19 list for the Seahawks, Carroll admitted the clock is ticking for either to have a chance to play on Sunday. If Lewis can't go, Kyle Fuller will likely start at left guard in his place, while Reed should jump back into his starting role at right cornerback after practicing all week.

"I think we're running out of time on both of those guys," Carroll stated. "It's going to be hard for them to make it back."