Off-Season Story Lines #2 - Health

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This upcoming season is going to be a breath of fresh air for the Seattle Seahawks.  As I posted in the first version of off-season story lines, Jimmy Graham is healthy and ready to contribute at a high level.  I also mentioned Tyler Lockett and his come back from a broken leg.  However, I want to focus on two different players for this thread - Earl Thomas and Russell Wilson.

Earl Thomas arguably the best safety in the NFL and it is very apparent what happens to the Seahawks defense when he is not on the field.  According to Pro Football Focus, the Seahawks are allowing a passer rating of 114.0 on deep throws without Earl Thomas on the field and just a 61.6 passer rating with Earl Thomas on the field.  Not only is he an extraordinary player, but he is a great leader as well.  Thomas' 2016 season was unfortunately cut short by a broken leg, but according to reports, Thomas is 'flying around the field' and seems to be moving around at full speed (Seahawks.com).

Russell Wilson appears to also be fully healthy after being hobbled by ankle and knee injuries last season.  Wilson's injuries flew under the radar for most people since he did not miss a game.  Due to his nagging injuries, Wilson produced a career low in rushing yards and it forced the Seahawks offense into more situations where they had to throw the football and where Wilson was not able to be as unpredictable to defenses since he was a limited runner.  Wilson appears to be healthy and ready to go for camp and Pete Carroll has high expectations for Wilson, "I think he's ready to put together a heck of a year.  There's no signs at all about his ankle or his knee that bothered him last year.  He looks great running around.  He's at top speed" (Seahawks.com).

Also of note, Kam Chancellor had off-season surgery on his ankles to remove bone spurs and he has been reported to be doing great and moving around at full speed.

Having so many valuable players on both sides of the football healthy and ready to go makes for a very exciting and promising season for the Seahawks.