Seahawks Star LB Jordyn Brooks Has Neck 'Discomfort'; Backup Tanner Muse 'Ready'

While being forced to replace the NFL's leading tackler is far from preferred, the Seattle Seahawks have plenty of faith in linebacker Tanner Muse if injured star Jordyn Brooks is unable to play next Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs.

For 10 All-Pro caliber years, the Seattle Seahawks defense was led by inside linebacker Bobby Wagner ... but with him now off to the Los Angeles Rams, Seattle has transitioned to former first-round pick Jordyn Brooks.

All Brooks has done without Wagner is follow up a breakout 2021 season by leading the NFL in tackles through 14 games with 149 - but his status moving forward is uncertain.

Brooks, 25, left Thursday night's loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the third quarter with a neck injury and never returned. 

He was replaced by Tanner Muse, a former third-round pick of the Las Vegas Raiders who's spent much of last season on the Seahawks practice squad before ascending into a special teams role this year. Muse finished the game with four tackles, but Seattle severely missed Brooks' presence.

The Seahawks receive something of a mini-bye week after the Thursday night game, traveling to take on the Kansas City Chiefs next Saturday, giving them eight full days to rest and get Brooks healthy - and they might need every bit of it, although the results of initial scans were encouraging.

"All the pictures that they took were negative, so that's a good sign," Carroll said Friday. "He's got some soreness, so we're going to go through a process to try to alleviate the discomfort, but there are no structural issues right now."

Seattle's other starting linebacker, Cody Barton, added after the game that Brooks' injury "doesn't seem to be something crazy," and he expects to return to action soon. Thus, early returns look to be promising, and Brooks certainly could be back in time for the Kansas City game.

But what if he's not?

In the case that Brooks can't play, Barton will take over the role of lead communicator, as he did Thursday night. As safety Quandre Diggs said, "that's like a pairing" - not necessarily a huge issue.

The bigger change comes alongside Barton, where Muse would slide into a starting role for the first time of his young career. While his inexperience would come with growing pains, Seattle's confident in what Muse has to offer - in part because he proves it every single snap on special teams.

"Tanner has always been ready to play," Diggs said. "You see him on special teams, the way he runs down. He's very, very smart. He's always answering questions in meetings, so it's not like he gets his opportunity and he's not ready to go. He got his opportunity, and he's ready to go. He's out there making close calls and relaying calls and things like that."

On a broader scale, Muse has capitalized on his second-chance opportunity in Seattle. He was cut by the Raiders after one year, failing to play a single snap after transitioning from safety to linebacker and suffering a toe injury before the start of his rookie season.

Muse, a former standout for the Clemson Tigers, has played in all 14 games this season, appearing in 70 percent of the special teams' snaps ... but entering the 49ers game, had played just three total defensive snaps during his professional career.

And while it wasn't a flawless showing, Muse made plays, capitalizing on the opportunity given to him. It's a microcosm of what Muse has done throughout his time with the Seahawks - and a big reason why his teammates have loads of faith in him if forced into action.

"It was cool to see him out there and you hate that J.B. is out, but I got a lot of respect for Tanner," Diggs shared. "He's just come into this thing, and he's worked. He knows his job. When it's his time, he'll be ready to go."

Muse' time could be as soon as Dec. 24 against Kansas City, depending on Brooks' status - but if not, he'll keep chipping away, one snap at a time, just as he's done each day over the last two seasons.

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You can follow Daniel Flick on Twitter @DFlickDraft

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