Carlos Hyde not playing Sunday; Seahawks put Brandon Shell, one other on COVID-19 list
On the eve of their final regular season game, the Seahawks have sent their first players from the active roster to the NFL’s COVID-19 list.
Starting right tackle Brandon Shell and defensive back Damarious Randall went on the reserve/COVID-19 list Saturday, the team announced, the day before the regular-season finale against San Francisco in Glendale, Arizona.
The Seahawks activated cornerback Tre Flowers from injured reserve. He had been on IR for four games with a hamstring injury.
“He’s ready to go,” coach Pete Carroll said. “He had a great week of practice and he’s ready to play.”
But D.J. Reed does not appear to be yielding Flowers’ old starting right cornerback spot, where he’s excelled.
Seattle added running back Alex Collins and wide receiver/special-teamer Penny Hart from the practice squad to the active roster to replace Shell and Randall for the 49ers game. The Seahawks also promoted reserve guard Alex Boone from the practice squad for the game.
Collins adds depth at running back with Carlos Hyde and DeeJay Dallas missing Sunday’s game. The veteran number-two back behind Chris Carson has been sick all week. Hyde did not travel with the Seahawks to Arizona Saturday. He had been questionable to play.
Dallas remains out for another game with a severely sprained ankle.
The Seahawks (11-4) have already clinched the division title and the home playoff game that comes with it. They have an outside chance for the number-one seed in the NFC. They need to win Sunday while Green Bay (12-3) loses at Chicago (8-7) and New Orleans (11-4) loses at Carolina (5-10).
Shell is in a “close-contact” situation “with someone he works with” who has tested positive for COVID-19, Carroll said. That is why Shell did not practice Friday.
Shell keeps testing negative but the Seahawks have to see what the next steps are with contact tracing for him.
“We’re just monitoring it to make sure he’s OK,” Carroll said Friday. “It’s a developing situation. We’ve got to figure it out. He’s tested clear, but somebody that he’s worked with hasn’t, outside of the (Seahawks’) program.
“So we’ve just got to make sure he’s OK. I don’t know what to tell you about that, other than that.”
The team learned of Shell’s contact-tracing issue during Friday’s practice.
It was unknown how and why Randall got on the COVID-19 list.
This story was originally published January 2, 2021 at 1:41 PM.
