Seahawks reunite with former star Lynch
RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Seahawks have reunited with Marshawn Lynch.
The bruising, 33-year-old running back known as “Beast Mode” signed a contract with the Seahawks on Monday night, his agent confirmed on Twitter.
Seattle is in desperate need of running backs after Chris Carson (hip) and C.J. Prosise (arm) both suffered season-ending injuries in Sunday’s 27-13 loss to Arizona. The Seahawks (11-4) close out their regular season on Sunday Night Football against San Francisco (12-3) in a game that will decide the NFC West champion.
Coach Pete Carroll said earlier Monday on his radio show that Lynch was flying to Seattle to undergo a physical. The coach also said reports are that the five-time Pro Bowler is in good shape.
Lynch has not played in more than a year. His last game was Week 6 of last season with the Oakland Raiders before a core injury ended his season.
The best stretch of Lynch’s career came during his six seasons in Seattle. He arrived via trade from Buffalo early in the 2010 season and became the face of a franchise filled with stars during his time. Sometimes difficult to deal with, but almost always productive on the field, Lynch rushed for 6,347 yards and 57 touchdowns in the regular season during his time in Seattle.
Lynch will always be remembered for his touchdown run in the 2010 playoffs against New Orleans that helped establish the “Beast Mode” persona. It was the top of the long list of highlights with the Seahawks.
Lynch may not be the only reunion for Seattle. Former running back Robert Turbin posted a picture from the Seahawks locker room on social media late Monday. There was no confirmation from the team that Turbin has signed, but he had been in for a workout with the team last week.
Turbin played for Seattle from 2012-14 and was Lynch’s backup.
“Happy to be back home,” Turbin wrote on Instagram.
Ravens to sit Jackson, other key starters
Having already accomplished all their goals for the regular season, the Baltimore Ravens will play the finale against Pittsburgh this Sunday without quarterback Lamar Jackson, eighttime Pro Bowl guard Marshal Yanda and several other key starters, including injured running back Mark Ingram.
The Ravens (13-2) extended their winning streak to 11 games and clinched the top seed in the AFC playoffs with a 31-15 win over Cleveland on Sunday. Ingram left in the fourth quarter with a calf injury, but should be ready when Baltimore opens the playoffs at home during the second weekend in January.
Coach John Harbaugh said Monday that Ingram has a “mild to moderate calf strain“and would probably be unavailable against the Steelers even if the game mattered to Baltimore.
Jackson will get a well-deserved day off after running for 1,206 yards and throwing 36 touchdown passes over the first 15 games. He has nothing left to prove, and losing him to injury in a meaningless game for the Ravens would be catastrophic.
Robert Griffin III will start at quarterback, and it’s possible that third-stringer Trace McSorley could make his NFL debut.
Odds and ends
Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch plans to undergo “minimally invasive” neck surgery to fix a nerve issue and will miss the rest of the season. … Washington rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins will not play in the season finale at Dallas after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Sunday’s loss to the Giants.