Yahoo Finance Pete Carroll: 'Good chance' Josh Gordon makes Seahawks debut on 'Monday Night Football'
One of the biggest X-factors in the NFC playoff picture could make his debut with his new team this week.
At practice on Saturday, Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said there was a “good chance” that wide receiver Josh Gordon would suit up for “Monday Night Football” against the San Francisco 49ers now that he’s been cleared of an ankle injury.
[Watch live NFL games all season long for free on the Yahoo Sports app]
Although Carroll wouldn’t totally commit to Gordon playing, it’s promising that he was completely removed from the team’s injury report. Gordon had been limited in practice earlier this week but participated fully Saturday.
“He did really well,” Carroll said, via the team site. “He was very impressive in terms of picking stuff up, studying overtime. He fit in really well. He’s a really good athlete. You can really tell that he’s got a lot of potential to be a big-time player, so it was fun seeing him on the practice field. He did a nice job.”
The Seahawks claimed Gordon off waivers from the New England Patriots on Nov. 1, but it would have been too quick of a turnaround for him to play in their game two days later, which they won in overtime.
Gordon is not the only new Seahawk who could take the field on Monday either. Safety Quandre Diggs, whom the team acquired from the Detroit Lions, was cleared of his hamstring injury as well.
What impact could Gordon have on the Seahawks?
It’s hard to know exactly what Gordon will bring to Seattle, but he has the potential to be as impactful as any wideout in the league. Gordon led the league with 1,646 receiving yards despite being suspended two games in 2013, but he has just 1,662 yards in the six years since because of substance abuse issues and inconsistent play.
That Gordon only accumulated 1,007 yards in 17 games over the last two seasons with the Patriots is discouraging. However, he’ll have another elite quarterback to work with in Russell Wilson, who had plenty of positive things to say about Gordon, via ESPN:
“Josh, he’s been great since he’s gotten here. He’s been studying like crazy. He sits up [front] and takes tons of notes. He’s highlighting like crazy. He’s in his playbook nonstop. He’s prepared. He’ll be prepared and ready to roll. He’s a true pro. He’s been in different systems and stuff like that. I think that helps him. I think he’s really fired up to be here. We’re fired up to have him.”
The other good news for Gordon is that he'll be a supporting character and not a feature receiver with Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf garnering plenty of attention. The Seahawks won seven of nine games without him, so they only need him be the cherry on top of one of the NFC’s most dangerous teams.
More from Yahoo Sports:
