Seattle Seahawks guard Luke Joeckel has been dealing with a knee injury this season, but playing through it. According to a report from NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, Joeckel is going to have the injury taken care of by getting surgery ... but not until after he plays in the team's Week 5 game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Seahawks G Luke Joeckel (knee) will play today and then the plan as of now is to undergo knee surgery during the bye, sources say.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 8, 2017
Again, that's the plan as of now. They'll see how he comes through the game today. If he gets surgery, should be a short absence.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 8, 2017
Joeckel is one of several Seahawks offensive linemen struggling early on in the season (he was dreadful in a season-opening loss to the Packers), but offensive line coach Tom Cable nevertheless seems to be enthused by his performance.
"Very consistent," Cable said, in describing Joeckel's play, per the Seattle Times. "Obviously, his experience, I think his wisdom, that he's grown playing tackle and some guard a year ago, has really paid off. You see him working well with Justin [Britt], working well with Rees [Odhiambo], and I just think his level of consistency is very high right now."
Joeckel will have his hands full Sunday as one of the interior linemen tasked with defending star Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald, who has resumed being an absolute monster since returning from his offseason contract holdout. The Seahawks take their bye in Week 6 and then follow it up with games against the Giants and Texans, so he won't get a break from strong front defenders even after he returns.
