Seahawks fear significant knee injury for LB Jordyn Brooks

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that Brooks is believed to be dealing with a “significant” injury, and that the initial outlook on his condition is “not good at all” (Twitter link). Further testing is required at this point before a firm diagnosis can be confirmed, but any absence would represent a crucial blow to Seattle’s defense given the former first-rounder’s production.

Brooks suffered the injury midway through the second quarter of Sunday’s contest, and was carted off the field and quickly ruled out for the remainder of the game. That left the Seahawks without their defensive signal-caller and leading tackler. Brooks had already made four stops prior to suffering the injury, giving him 161 on the season, his second straight as a full-time starter in the middle of Seattle’s defense.

The Texas Tech alum set a franchise record with 183 tackles in 2021, and put up similar numbers prior to the injury. Brooks currently sits third in the league in that department, having added one sack and five pass deflections. His struggles in pass coverage have led to a third straight underwhelming year in terms of PFF grade on the other hand, something which comes as little surprise given his skillset coming out of college.

Cody Barton took over for Brooks in the middle of the second level after the latter’s injury, with Tanner Muse playing the weak side. That combination helped the Seahawks hold the Jets to just six points on Sunday, and they will both likely need to play starter’s snaps once again in Week 18 if Brooks’ injury does indeed turn out to be significant. Seattle needs a win against the Rams and help from the Lions to clinch the NFC’s final postseason berth, though their prospects in the playoffs would be hindered significantly if Brooks were unable to play.