Adam Schefter of ESPN lent his voice to those reporting that Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch will play this afternoon against the Cardinals and another report indicates he’ll continue to be available to the Seattle offense.
Jason LaCanfora of CBSSports.com reports that Lynch will not be immediately suspended by the league as a result of his DUI arrest this offseason. Lynch has already met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell about the arrest and LaCanfora’s report indicates that the league will wait to see how his legal case plays out before taking any kind of action against the running back. That’s not likely to happen during this season.
Lynch was suspended three games in 2009 after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge. The DUI qualifies as a violation of the substance abuse policy and it is Lynch’s first violation on that front. The penalty in those cases is usually a fine of two game checks.
While Lynch will play, Schefter reports that he’ll see less work than he might under ideal conditions. That should mean a fair amount of work for rookie Robert Turbin, who was in line to start if Lynch wasn’t able to play in the season opener.