Cornerback DeShawn Shead and defensive end Dion Jordan are both closing in on a return to practice for the Seattle Seahawks after missing the first chunk of the season with knee injuries.
Shead has been on the physically unable to perform list since the start of training camp while recovering from a torn ACL sustained in Seattle’s playoff loss to Atlanta last January.
“He absolutely has his mind set on getting back in a couple of weeks,” head coach Pete Carroll said last Friday. “Whether he can do that or not, or whether they let him, I don’t know that, but if you watched him run the hill today, he was killing it. We’ll see.”
Jordan is on the non-football injury list after needing a pair of knee surgeries following his signing with the team in April. He hasn’t appeared in an NFL game since 2014 with Miami as injuries and suspensions have kept him sidelined.
“Just this week, he has really turned the corner,” Carroll said. “He had a fantastic workout today. I was watching him over the top of practice today, he was out here busting it and he’s with the strength and conditioning guys now, and he’s really pushing not to just get in shape, but to get ready to go.
“Is it one week, two weeks, three weeks, or that kind of stuff? I don’t know that yet, but he’s going to get close to the opportunity to come back and we’ll see where he fits. That would be a tremendous boost for us if that could happen.”
Both Shead and Jordan could provide needed boosts to Seattle’s depth. Shead started 15 games at cornerback for Seattle last year and had 81 tackles with 14 passes defended and an interception. He’s also a key special teams player for Seattle.
With Cliff Avril’s status in serious question, Jordan could provide a possible high-ceiling option to fit into Seattle’s rotation alongside Michael Bennett, Frank Clark and Marcus Smith. Given that he hasn’t played in three seasons, he could also provide nothing of consequence either.
Both Shead and Jordan are eligible to return to practice after the Seahawks return from their bye next week. Carroll said they won’t be ready to return that quickly but are on similar timelines at this point. The team will have until Nov. 21 at the latest to make a decision on whether to add either player to their active roster for the rest of the year.