If the Seattle Seahawks are going to be getting into the playoffs this year, it will likely be without Marshawn Lynch in the backfield. The running back sat out the team's Week 11 game against the San Francisco 49ers dealing with an abdomen injury. With his health status up in the air at the moment, the running back could be prepared to undergo surgery and end his 2015 season early. Will that hurt his status with the team moving forward?
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Lynch is seeing a specialist in regards to his abdomen injury which could end up being diagnosed as a sports hernia and will require surgery. The running back is trying to see if the injury could heal on its own for if the surgery is the only method in which case his season would be over. Head coach Pete Carroll was originally under the belief that Lynch would be fine to play in Week 11, but after sitting out that might not be the case.
"We're going to try to take care of him, he's going to make a trip to go see (a specialist) out in Philadelphia to see if we can figure out what's going on," Carroll said, via the team's official website. "It's an abdominal issue, there's a lot going on there, so we've got to see what that all means. He tried. We rested him all week and we rehabbed him all week long. Really the first time we took a real look at was out here in pregame, and he just couldn't get going."
In Lynch's place, Thomas Rawls thrived as the leading running back putting together a solid performance that consisted of him putting up 255 yards from scrimmage and two scores. Lynch has never achieved those numbers before. The undrafted rookie is looking like a star in the making or at least one that continues to demand a larger role from the team. If Lynch is out for the year, Rawls becomes the top rusher and could secure his spot for the future in Seattle.
Lynch's future is coming under fire as the injuries stack up this year. The running back is having a down year as the entire Seahawks offense struggles. However, this could hurt his future as he approaching 30 with $9 million owed to him in 2016. Considering Rawls is playing well with just $525,000 owed to him, the veteran could be on his way out of Seattle.
Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio and Greg Bishop of MMQB.com believe that Lynch could be the first man out. Of course Lynch is a complete back with a very good resume to his name, but he is struggling this year while not being healthy and not getting younger. The Seahawks have a serious need to rebuild their offensive line while paying other defensive players. His salary could go towards that. Rawls showed Seattle what life could be like without Lynch and is was not terrible.
Seattle managed to put together a complete win against the 49ers, beating the team 29-13. Several players looked much improved including Tyler Lockett and Russell Wilson while Jimmy Graham continued to struggle.