Seahawks WR Room 'Tested' with Jaxon Smith-Njigba Injury - Carroll

Seattle Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba will miss three to four weeks with a wrist injury, and coach Pete Carroll says the rookie's absence could leave the room under slight duress.

The Seattle Seahawks have had a solid offseason as of late, as back-to-back preseason wins over the Minnesota Vikings and Dallas Cowboys have the feel-good factor flowing.

But as is usual in the NFL, or "Not For Long," things don't stay that way. Rookie Jaxon Smith-Njigba is expected to miss three to four weeks after having surgery on a fracture in his wrist. 

And despite the rookie having yet to play a regular-season game, coach Pete Carroll admitted that the receiving room is "a little bit tested," but added that the team welcomed back several players during practice this week.

“Well, fortunately, Cade [Johnson] came back, and Easop [Winston Jr.] got some work, we brought in a new kid in [Justin] Marshall so we’ll see what happens here,” Carroll said. “We’re a little bit tested, you know, but it was great to see a couple guys back, matter of fact, we had about six or seven guys come back to practice, so it felt good to get those guys back out.”

Smith-Njigba shined against the Cowboys in the 22-14 win on Saturday, as he hauled in three catches for 58 yards. Now, with the former Ohio State Buckeye sidelined, an opportunity presents itself to others on the roster bubble.

Winston Jr. grabbed himself a touchdown against the Vikings in Game 1 of the preseason, and rookie Jake Bobo has been impressive as he looks to push for a roster spot.

Carroll had some glowing words for Bobo, an undrafted rookie out of UCLA.

“Jake's flying pretty high right now, he’s done great," Carroll said. "He hasn’t just done well in the few plays in the game. He’s done well in practice throughout. He’s been really steady like it’s not a surprise to see him play like that in the games. We were thrilled to see what would happen cause he’s been making plays out here. He looks like he’s part of the flow to me."

When one door closes, another opens. With Smith-Njigba sidelined, several receivers will now get their chance to stake a claim for a roster spot in practice and against the Green Bay Packers in Lambeau on Saturday in the preseason finale.

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