Seahawks suddenly need C.J. Prosise — remember him? — for perhaps last of many chances
For more than a month, into this crucial one, the Seahawks had no need for C.J. Prosise.
They sure do now.
“It was tough, you know, kind of coming in and not having much expectation of playing,” Seattle’s forgotten, fourth-year running back said this week.
Now everybody — including his coaching staff — is suddenly remembering Prosise.
For five consecutive games, from the Seahawks’ win at Atlanta Oct. 27 through the Monday night win over Minnesota Dec. 2, his coaches told Prosise to put on team sweatsuits during games instead of his uniform and helmet. The Seahawks’ third-round draft choice in 2016, a star as a rookie that year before getting hurt, a star at Notre Dame as a wide receiver then a running back, was a healthy inactive for five consecutive games. He was not even worthy of getting in uniform behind lead back Chris Carson, 2018 first-round pick Rashaad Penny and rookie sixth-round pick Travis Homer.
In a sixth game, Seattle’s home win over the Los Angeles Rams in October, Prosise didn’t play, either. At least he was in uniform for that one.
“It was frustrating,” Prosise said. “I was a hard time for me. But at the same time I knew, for me personally, it was adversity that I had to go through. It was just going to make me stronger, make me better for the opportunity ahead.
“Now is the opportunity. I’m trying to take advantage.”
Penny tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee on his only play of last weekend’s loss to the Rams in Los Angeles. Pete Carroll said Wednesday Penny is headed to season-ending surgery.
Carroll implied Penny may have more damage than his ACL.
“There’s some other stuff that they’ll look at when they get in there,” he said.
“It’s a long haul before we get him back. We’re going to take all the right precautions to make sure we start the process at the right time.”
Prosise’s nine lives
Suddenly, the Seahawks need Prosise.
He was in danger of not making the team this preseason. Then, when he absolutely had to to keep from getting cut, Prosise erupted in August for three bolting runs and a touchdown in an exhibition game against the Chargers. It showed why Carroll and general manager John Schneider drafted and kept him for years even though he was missing two-thirds of their games.
Now he’s the “next man up” that Carroll and every Seahawk recite as a fact of life in the NFL with its nearly 100-percent injury rate.
The third-down back to catch passes from Russell Wilson for most of his three-plus years. The no-luck enigma who’s been derailed by eight different injuries, who’s played in only 23 out of a possible 61 regular-season games in his career. The fourth-year veteran weeks away from the end of his rookie contract.
After yet more weeks and months of being mothballed, the Seahawks need him to back up Carson in a run-heavy offense for the biggest games of the season.
Sunday’s date at reeling Carolina (5-8) begins a three-game run to close the regular season for the Seahawks (10-3). Win all three, and Seattle will win the NFC West, will host at least one playoff game and likely will have a first-round bye.
“I mean, it’s not my first time in this position,” Prosise said. “Just, the time is called, you have to go perform.
“I’m just ready for the opportunity. I feel more prepared than ever. I’ve been working on my game, working on myself, mentally and physically. I’ve stayed in the playbook to stay ready. I knew my number was going to be called at some point.
“So I’ve been waiting for it.”
His position coach noticed Prosise’s patience.
Chad Morton also knew Prosise was feeling slighted just 10 days ago after a fifth consecutive week of scout-team practices to ready everyone else to play.
Yet the Seahawks’ running backs coach said Prosise’s disappointment did not adversely affect his attitude nor his readiness for this sudden chance.
“He’s handled it extremely well. I’m so proud of him,” Morton said. “Because he’s been practicing really hard.
“Guys, they get a sense of who is going to be ‘up’ (active) or ‘down’ (inactive, for each game), and stuff like that. ... But he still practiced hard every, single time. We put him on the scout team sometimes, just so we could get him some more work. And he handled it beautifully, kept working hard.
“That’s why I’m like, ‘Can’t wait to see him out here.’ It’d be different if guys had a bad attitude and don’t want to practice and don’t go full speed, and now they finally get that opportunity, and now they want to go hard in practice?
“No. Our guys don’t do that.”
Why backup runners matter in Seattle
Why not with the previously emerging Penny out for the season just run the punishing Carson, who passed 1,000 yards rushing for the second consecutive season last weekend against the Rams?
Well, the last time Carson played a full season injury-free was when the 25-year-old was just out of high school and in junior college. The Seahawks need to run 20-30 (or more) times per game to give their offensive line a better chance at its weaker skill, pass protection. The run makes opposing defenses have to play more honestly than simply targeting Wilson on drop backs to throw.
If the Seahawks give Carson all those 20-30 runs per game, history says their leading rusher may not be around for any playoffs. That’s an issue.
That’s why Prosise and Homer are going to matter this month and likely next one, too.
“The game plan (is) to run the ball. We’ve got three, four running backs that can do that,” said Carson, who was personally broken up about his friend Penny getting seriously injured Sunday night.
“We take the next-man-up approach.”
The reason it’s not Homer, who has played in every game on special teams and lately has been the team’s kickoff returner, as Penny’s replacement as number two is because of two games Prosise romped in November 2016, his rookie season.
Thrashing through New England for 153 total yards on a Sunday-night upset of the Patriots when starter Thomas Rawls was out injured.
“He lit up our sidelines,” then-wide receiver Doug Baldwin said of Prosise that night.
The following week Prosise zoomed 72 yards, the eighth-longest run in franchise history, for a touchdown early against Philadelphia. That was 234 yards from scrimmage in less than six full quarters.
Frankly, the wowing promise of those two performances is why Prosise is still on this team.
How else to explain keeping him after all those injuries?
Prosise broke his shoulder blade later in that Eagles game, one quarter after his touchdown run. That began three, frustrating seasons of pain and injury and unfulfilled expectations.
“I mean, he can run,” Morton said. “You see some of the production he’s had, and you see his value. ... He is always going to be tied to those games. Because you saw him play a full game. You could see all the thing that he can do: run, catch the ball, things like that.
“So we are really excited.”
Carson, who was still running in college at Oklahoma State when Prosise was at his Seahawks best three years ago, glows about what his new backup might bring this month.
“He’s a very dynamic running back. Kind of like how Rashaad is,” Carson said. “He’s elusive, great hands out the backfield. He can do it all. He’s had the same mindset since training camp. He’s finally playing this season where he’s not injured.
“His confidence is there. I’m just excited to see him back on the field.”
This story was originally published December 12, 2019 at 6:24 AM.
