Seahawks defensive end Jadeveon Clowney was removed from the team’s final injury report in advance of Sunday’s wild-card game against the Eagles. But it’s clear that he’s still dealing with a core muscle injury (sports hernia) that will need to be addressed at some point.
“We’re just getting him to game time is all we can get done right now,” coach Pete Carroll told reporters on Friday. “He worked today. He got his reps in today and was able to demonstrate the game plan and that he knew what was going on. If this is what we got, this is what we got. We got to work with it.”
That sounds like a far cry from Clowney being 100 percent. But the injury report only requires a designation as to the chance a guy will play. Clowney, who practiced on a limited basis on Friday after not practicing on Wednesday and Thursday, will play. How long he plays and how well he plays is clearly in question, as it’s been ever since he had one of the best games of his career against the 49ers in November.
To his credit, Clowney hasn’t shut it down and gotten surgery. He’s doing what he can do to play, even if it means not being nearly as effective during his game for the ages in Santa Clara. As he approaches free agency, his willingness to tough it out should get the attention of anyone who is thinking about pursuing him.