4 things to know ahead of Seahawks-Chiefs game

The Seattle Seahawks will play the Kansas City Chiefs at CenturyLink Field on Friday in its third preseason game this year.

Watch the game on KIRO 7 News with Game day coverage starting at 4:30 p.m. Kick-off is at 5 p.m.

>> Download our free KIRO 7 News app to watch our Game Day show coverage 

Here are four things to know from ESPN Seattle ahead of the game.

Tyler Lockett’s return proceeding with caution

Coach Pete Carroll has been watching Tyler Lockett very closely in practice, and he’s seen a receiver that looks fast and confident.

Just don’t expect to see Lockett on the field.

%

%

“I still want to make sure that we’re taking all the time we have available,” Carroll said. “There’s no reason to rush him. He’s a fantastic competitor. He knows what we’re doing.”

Locket suffered broken bones in his leg while catching a touchdown pass against Arizona on the second-to-last regular-season game last season.

Lockett has yet to play in a preseason game, and while Carroll didn’t explicitly rule Lockett out for Friday’s game, he sounded like a coach who was going to err on the side of discretion over valor when it came to Lockett getting back into a game.

C.J. Prosise, Thomas Rawls out for Friday’s game

If this were the regular season, C.J. Prosise and Thomas Rawls would be game-time decisions for Seattle.

But since it’s the preseason neither one of those guys will be suiting up for Friday’s game against Kansas City.

“If we were playing in a regular-season game,” coach Pete Carroll said, “they would be pushing to play. We’d be pushing them to go ahead because we thought it was safe. But let’s just take another week.”

Prosise missed last week’s preseason game after his groin muscle tightened up during pre-game warmups while Rawls sat out the game because of an ankle injury.

%

%

Expect Eddie Lacy to start Friday’s game with rookie Chris Carson and offseason acquisition Mike Davis also getting opportunities in the first half.

As for Rawls and Prosise?

“We know what we can do with these guys,” Carroll said. “We just wish that we were getting the continuity of them playing with us. But other than we need to get them as healthy as we can get them going into the opener.

One play that shows Seahawks’ Earl Thomas is back

Earl Thomas, who saw his 2016 season cut short with a broken leg, is back and at full speed, according to 710 ESPN Seattle's Dave Wyman.

It's undoubtedly been a long journey for Thomas, who briefly worried his career was over and contemplated retirement after the injury. To the relief of Seahawks fans, Thomas has returned for the 2017 season.

Most Intriguing Seahawks: No. 3, Earl Thomas

In the video above, Wyman takes a look at how Thomas used his speed – and more importantly, his instinct – to make a stop on one particular third-and-3 play for the Seahawks’ preseason win last week over the Vikings. It’s something Wyman is not only glad to see but believes will make receivers think twice about coming across the middle. For football beginners, Wyman also quickly breaks down a what Cover-1 scheme is.

Seahawks assistant Brian Schneider: Special teams may be deepest yet

The Seattle Seahawks have had quite a few standout players this preseason, but fans shouldn't forget about the players vying to stake their place on special teams, especially since special teams coach Brian Schneider told 710 ESPN Seattle's John Clayton this year's roster may be the deepest yet.

“I think this is the deepest roster we’ve had from one to 90,” Schneider said Wednesday. “And so when you have really good players, our job is to try to fit them into the different things we have going. But I just think our whole roster is pretty deep right now. And it’s exciting, and it makes for a great competition because all the players know it too. What I told them the first day is our goal is for all 90 of you guys to be on a team, and hopefully it’s our team, but it’s the reality of the NFL.”

Cox Media Group