The Seattle Seahawks' worst fears came true: Defensive end Chris Clemons will miss the rest of the playoffs with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus, his agent told NFL.com's Ian Rapoport on Monday. Clemons will meet with Dr. James Andrews soon.
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"It's a big loss for us in a lot of ways," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said, via The Associated Press. "Chris has been a great football player and just a symbol of consistency in the years that we've had him, but he's been a great leader for us, too, and a tough dude and a guy we've become very comfortable playing with, and we'll miss the heck out of him."
Carroll isn't kidding. Clemons led the Seahawks with 11 sacks and 37 hurries, according to Pro Football Focus. The next closest hurry total: 23 by rookie Bruce Irvin.
Irvin now will be forced into a three down-role. He has struggled in run support, but he did set a Seahawks rookie record with eight sacks.
"This is Bruce's opportunity," Carroll said, via The AP. "This is what we drafted him to play, and we'll see how he does. We expect him to do really well as he steps up."
The Atlanta Falcons, who'll play the Seahawks on Sunday, have had struggles with edge rushers this season, so they should be breathing a sigh of relief. We'd also expect them to run with Jacquizz Rodgers and Michael Turner at Irvin's side of the field.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.
