Seahawks 90-Man Roster Rundown: Chris Carson

Coming off cervical fusion surgery, there’s a very real possibility that Carson has played his last down of football in the NFL. If he does get cleared to play, however, he will step right back into a prominent role in the Seahawks rushing attack.

Ted Zahn | Jul 21, 2022

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Seattle Seahawks

With the calendar flipping to July and offseason programs wrapped up across the country, NFL training camps will begin around the NFL in less than a month's time. To celebrate the new incoming season, the All Seahawks staff will be breaking down the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, exploring best and worst case scenarios and what to expect from each player entering the 2022 campaign.

Chris Carson, Running Back

Height/Weight: 5-foot-11, 222 pounds

2021 Stats: 54 carries, 232 yards, three touchdowns

One of the best late-round draft picks during Pete Carroll and John Schneider’s tenure with the Seahawks, Carson fought through his share of injuries since being drafted in the seventh round out of Oklahoma State in 2017. Drawing praise from coaches and teammates alike during his first training camp, he worked his way into the starting lineup in Week 2. A broken ankle in Week 4 put him on the shelf for the remainder of that season, but Carson returned in 2018 and rushed for over 1,000 yards in each of the next two seasons. A fractured hip suffered in Week 16 of the 2019 season knocked him out for the playoffs and put him in rehab mode once again. Carson returned in 2020, but missed four games during the middle of the season with a broken foot, which pushed his rushing yards down to 681. He did contribute nine total touchdowns, which was a pattern as he had nine total touchdowns in both 2018 and 2019 as well. That level of production swayed the Seahawks to re-sign Carson to a two-year, $10.425 million contract in the 2021 offseason. The injury woes crept up again during the 2021 season when he sustained a neck injury in Week 4 and was placed on injured reserve. Carson attempted to rehab the injury, but eventually underwent cervical fusion surgery, placing his future status very much in doubt.

Best Case Scenario: Carson is cleared to play football again. Forget the statistics, just being able to get back on the field without jeopardizing his health would be a huge success for Carson.

Worst Case Scenario: Like Kam Chancellor, Cliff Avril, and a few other recent Seahawks, Carson is not cleared to play football and moves on to another chapter in his life.

What to Expect in 2022: At this point, Carson still has not been cleared to play and there are very real doubts as to whether or not he ever will be. The Seahawks drafted Ken Walker III in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, which may tip their hand about their feelings on Carson’s long-term prognosis. Pete Carroll didn’t sound very confident about the veteran being cleared at his last minicamp press conference. Carson himself is not placing a timeline on his recovery. When healthy, he is one of the better running back in the NFL, gaining 3,778 total yards to go along with 27 touchdowns from 2018-2020 as the lead back for the Seahawks. He’s a bruising, battering ram of a rusher who brought the physicality Seattle was sorely lacking with the departure of Marshawn Lynch. Sadly, that punishing style leads to injuries which have been a consistent part of Carson’s career dating back to high school. The latest may be the one that puts an end to his playing days.

Previous Seahawks 90-Man Roster Profiles

Published Jul 21, 2022

TED ZAHN