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Seahawks designate pair of defensive backs for return to practice

Published

1 hour ago

December 11, 2024

Seahawks designate pair of defensive backs for return to practice

The Seattle Seahawks’ secondary is about to get some reinforcements for the home stretch of the regular season.

On Wednesday, the team announced that cornerback Artie Burns and safety K’Von Wallace have been designated for return to practice. Burns has been on injured reserve since mid-October due to a toe injury suffered against the San Francisco 49ers, whereas Wallace suffered an ankle injury in Week 9 against the Los Angeles Rams. This was Wallace’s first week of eligibility to return, whereas Burns could’ve been activated since Week 12.

Both players have a 21-day practice window to be activated off injured reserve and onto the active roster. If neither one is ready to return within that window, then they will revert to IR and be done for the season.

Burns has been primarily a special teams player and backup nickel corner, whereas Wallace started the season as the third safety behind Julian Love and Rayshawn Jenkins. Coby Bryant has assumed the role of starter alongside Love, while Jenkins is the third safety. It’ll be interesting to see what role, if any, Wallace has in the defense upon return.

The Seahawks will have to do some roster shuffling in order to get those two and reserve tackle Stone Forsythe back on the active roster. Forsythe is entering his final full week of his practice window and hasn’t yet been activated off of IR.

Fellow backup tackle George Fant, guard Anthony Bradford, and nose tackle Cameron Young are the other Seahawks players on injured reserve. NFL teams can only activate eight players off of injured reserve within the regular season, and the Seahawks are currently at six. You can do the math in terms of who may not be back for the regular season, but keep in mind playoff teams are allowed two more activations off of IR.

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Seattle Seahawks Breakdown: Sizing up the tight NFC West race

Published

9 hours ago

December 11, 2024

Press Room

Seattle Seahawks Breakdown: Sizing up the tight NFC West race

Sparked by a midseason turnaround on defense, the Seattle Seahawks have rattled off a four-game win streak to surge into first place atop the razor-tight NFC West.

Unexpected Impact: 4 Seahawks key to surge back atop NFC West

With four weeks remaining in the regular season, Seattle holds the division lead at 8-5. The Los Angeles Rams are one game behind at 7-6, while the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers are both two games back at 6-7.

The NFC West is the only division in the league where all four teams are still realistically alive for the division title. All four NFC West teams are within two games of each other, whereas each of the other seven divisions have at least a four-game gap between their first-place and last-place teams.

According to ESPN’s Football Power Index, the Seahawks have a 52% chance to win the NFC West and 55% chance to reach the playoffs. The Rams have a 32% chance of winning the division, followed by the 49ers at 9% and the Cardinals at 7%.

Here’s a closer breakdown of the NFC West race. All odds and strength of scheduling rankings are according to ESPN.

Seattle Seahawks

Record: 8-5

NFC West title odds: 52%

Division record: 3-2

Head-to-head: 2-0 vs. Cardinals, 1-1 vs. 49ers, 0-1 vs. Rams

Remaining schedule: vs. Packers (9-4), vs. Vikings (11-2), at Bears (4-9), at Rams (7-6)

Remaining strength of schedule: 8th-hardest

Breakdown: The Seahawks are in the driver’s seat of the NFC West race, but their next two games are against Green Bay and Minnesota – who own two of the four best records in the NFC. The good news is that both matchups are at home, but Seattle is currently the underdog in both games, according to ESPN’s FPI. The Seahawks’ regular-season finale against the Rams could very well end up being a de facto NFC West title game, especially since Los Angeles currently holds the head-to-head tiebreaker after beating Seattle on the road in Week 9.

Los Angeles Rams

Record: 7-6

NFC West title odds: 32%

Division record: 2-1

Head-to-head: 1-0 vs. Seahawks, 1-0 vs. 49ers, 0-1 vs. Cardinals

Remaining schedule: at 49ers (6-7), at Jets (3-10), vs. Cardinals (6-7), vs. Seahawks (8-5)

Remaining strength of schedule: 13th-hardest

Breakdown: At the moment, the Rams are the biggest threat to the Seahawks. Los Angeles is just one game behind Seattle and currently holds the head-to-head tiebreaker after beating the Seahawks in Week 9. The Rams travel to face the 49ers on Thursday night, which will have major implications on the NFC West race. If the Rams win, they would put themselves in position to move into first place with a Seahawks loss to the Packers on Sunday night. The Rams then have a favorable matchup the following week against the 3-10 Jets, while Seattle faces 11-2 Minnesota that same day.

Arizona Cardinals

Record: 6-7

NFC West title odds: 7%

Division record: 2-2

Head-to-head: 1-0 vs. Rams, 1-0 vs. 49ers, 0-2 vs. Seahawks

Remaining schedule: vs. Patriots (3-10), at Panthers (3-10), at Rams (7-6), vs. 49ers (6-7)

Remaining strength of schedule: 28th-hardest

Breakdown: The Seahawks beat Arizona twice in the past three weeks to sweep the season series and secure the head-to-head tiebreaker between the two teams. That means Seattle’s two-game lead over Arizona is essentially a three-game lead, which would be very difficult for the Cardinals to overcome – even with their favorable closing slate.

San Francisco 49ers

Record: 6-7

NFC West title odds: 9%

Division record: 1-3

Head-to-head: 1-1 vs. Seahawks, 0-1 vs. Rams, 0-1 vs. Cardinals

Remaining schedule: vs. Rams, at Dolphins, vs. Lions, at Cardinals

Remaining strength of schedule: 7th-hardest

Breakdown: The injury-plagued 49ers are currently in last place, but they could surge right back into the mix if they beat the Rams on Thursday night – especially with the Seahawks facing challenging opponents the next two weeks. Many wrote off the 49ers as the injuries continued to pile up during their recent three-game losing streak. But as they showed with their emphatic 38-13 rout of the Bears on Sunday, the defending NFC champions can’t be counted out just yet.

Seattle Seahawks news and analysis

• The changes that finally unlocked the Seattle Seahawks’ run game
• Seahawks’ Macdonald: Players have ‘done everything we’ve asked them’
• Bump: The most impressive factor in JSN’s Seahawks breakout
• Huard: What Seattle Seahawks rookie RG adds that O-line was missing
• How Seattle Seahawks’ less-heralded trade has impacted D-line

Follow @CameronVanTil

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WATCH: Ansley Almonor, Brandon Garrison recap Gonzaga win, trip to Seattle

Published

17 hours ago

December 10, 2024

Press Room

WATCH: Ansley Almonor, Brandon Garrison recap Gonzaga win, trip to Seattle

Kentucky’s comeback win in overtime against Gonzaga is a few days behind us at this point, but that doesn’t mean we’re not done talking about it just yet.

On Tuesday afternoon, fifth-year forward Ansley Almonor and sophomore center Brandon Garrison spoke with the media to further break down the victory over the Bulldogs while also sharing some details about the team’s trip to Seattle (did you know Collin Chandler cut Kerr Kriisa’s hair the day before the game?). The guys talked about the adjustments that head coach Mark Pope made at halftime, how Kriisa’s energy impacts the rest of the team, what to expect out of Colgate, and much more.

Listen to everything Almonor and Garrison had to say below. Kentucky will host Colgate on Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. EST on ESPN2.

More Kentucky News and Views on the KSR YouTube Channel

Kentucky Sports Radio has expanded its coverage of the Wildcats in the most ridiculous manner possible on our YouTube Channel. Here you will be able to find interviews with coaches and players, as well as commentary from the KSR crew. From Rapid Reactions following big events to our lengthy lineup of live shows, subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel to stay up to date on everything happening around the Big Blue Nation.

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My Head Start Story: A Lifetime Connection

Published

1 day ago

December 10, 2024

Press Room

My Head Start Story: A Lifetime Connection

Excited girls using chemistry set together in elementary science classroom

By Maryom McCloud

My story is a series of events and opportunities that likely would not have happened if not for Head Start. We lived in the George Legare housing development in North Charleston, South Carolina. My mom had me while she was in high school. My grandmother became my primary caregiver as my mom continued her education by going to college. My grandmother enrolled me in the Mamie G. Fields Head Start, which centered me in a safe and caring environment. I loved going to school. I loved that I had a book bag just like my mom. Little did I know, while she worked to fulfill her dreams, Head Start would initiate a journey leading to my dreams, too.

It’s hard sometimes to remember last week, let alone decades ago, but I have vivid memories from my time at Head Start. I remember things like eating lunch with classmates and the school’s immaculate facilities, with different areas for toys and activities. And the books! Head Start gave me my first set of books, and I fell in love with reading. One cemented memory is when I had to get dressed up and take pictures for a special ceremony that included “really important people” from the town who didn’t look like me, my family, or anyone in my neighborhood. That’s how my young mind understood what I would later learn to be the vestiges of racial segregation.

When it was time to move on from Head Start, my literacy and numeracy skills were advanced. Because Head Start taught my mother how to advocate for what was in my best interest educationally, she requested a meeting with the elementary school principal to discuss my beginning kindergarten, even though my birthday was after the registration cut-off. That meeting resulted in two additional opportunities. First, I started kindergarten at four years old. Second, the school principal offered my mother a job as a substitute teacher, which was her first job with benefits. This opportunity was a significant boost for our family that could not have happened had she been unable to attend and finish her studies. Throughout my school years, I excelled. I graduated high school at 16 and started college at 17, intending to pursue an electrical and chemical engineering degree. Additional encounters and opportunities along the way helped me identify a career path in accounting instead. I’ve always been skilled with numbers and learned that finance suits me well.

Not long after launching my career, I merged my aptitude for numbers with my core belief in serving others by working in the public service, governmental, and nonprofit sectors. Now, as a result, my work is challenging and fulfilling. My first job was as a director of Finance and Human Resources for a Community Action Agency, which served Head Start children and families. I have had a successful career at various governmental and nonprofit programs with Head Start in multiple regions and states for over 16 years. And, in 2020, I joined Lutheran Family Services Florida as the director of Finance–yet another opportunity to give back to Head Start. When I look at my path and my family’s, I firmly believe that Head Start had a central role in where we are today. Head Start is a catalyst for changing mindsets, leading to opportunities that change lives.

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