Seahawks Place McIntosh on IR, Promote 2 From Practice Squad

Adding some insurance in the secondary and on special teams, the Seattle Seahawks elevated veteran cornerback Artie Burns and linebacker Jon Rhattigan from the practice squad to suit up against the Los Angeles Rams in Sunday's regular season opener.

Burns, a former first-round pick out of Miami, returned to the Seahawks as a free agent in May after playing in three games for the team in 2022. Enjoying a strong preseason, the 28-year old cornerback registered nine tackles, a tackle for loss, and two pass breakups, initially earning a spot on the 53-man roster before being waived and brought back to the practice squad.

With Devon Witherspoon listed as questionable with a hamstring injury on Friday's final injury report, promoting Burns may be telling about his status heading into Seattle's opener. It's also possible both players could play, as the team may not be comfortable suiting rookie Kyu Blu Kelly less than two weeks after being claimed off waivers from Baltimore and prefer the veteran as a special teams contributor and depth corner.

Even with Jordyn Brooks ready to play less than nine months after ACL surgery and Devon Bush also active behind starter Bobby Wagner at linebacker, the Seahawks opted to promote Rhattigan due to his special teams talents. Before suffering an ACL injury of his own as a rookie in 2021, he produced 10 tackles and a fumble recovery on kick and punt coverage, emerging as a standout in the third phase of the game.