RENTON, Wash. -- Seattle Seahawks receiver David Moore is expected to be sidelined past the start of the regular season because of a shoulder injury, coach Pete Carroll told reporters Friday.
Early indications are that Moore is not expected to require surgery, a source told ESPN. But his injury is another setback for a receiver corps that no longer has Doug Baldwin and is already without rookie DK Metcalf, who is recovering from a recent knee surgery that has his availability for Week 1 in question.
Carroll left no doubt that Moore's injury, which occurred in practice Thursday, will keep him out of Seattle's Sept. 8 opener against the Cincinnati Bengals, if not longer.
"He's going to be out awhile," Carroll said.
Moore, a seventh-round pick in 2017, emerged as a big-play threat last season while catching 26 passes for 445 yards and five touchdowns. According to Pro Football Focus, Moore generated the third-highest passer rating when targeted on go routes at 108.8, behind JuJu Smith-Schuster and Antonio Brown. Moore is projected to be a regular in Seattle's receiver rotation along with Tyler Lockett, Metcalf and veteran Jaron Brown.
The injuries to Moore and Metcalf increase the likelihood of the Seahawks' keeping at least six receivers on their initial 53-man roster. If they want to place Moore on injured reserve with the plan to bring him back after he misses the requisite eight games, he would need to be on the 53-man roster as of the 1 p.m. PT deadline on cut-down day, which is Aug. 31. Seattle could then place him on IR later in the week. Only players who go on IR after Aug. 31 are eligible to be called off IR.
Keenan Reynolds, fourth-round pick Gary Jennings Jr., seventh-round pick John Ursua and undrafted rookie Jazz Ferguson are among Seattle's other receivers who are fighting for roster spots.
Metcalf had what Carroll described as a "minimal" surgery on his knee earlier this week. Carroll said Metcalf has "no swelling at all" and again expressed optimism that the promising second-round pick will be back soon.
"He's really on track to really make a great recovery," Carroll said. "... We don't think he's going to lose much [more] than a couple weeks, and he'll be active next week, for sure, doing a lot of stuff. He's making a great recovery, so we'll keep our fingers crossed that he can make it back quickly."
Carroll had encouraging updates on defensive ends Ezekiel Ansah and L.J. Collier. Ansah has a chance to start practicing next week, which would give him two weeks of practice before the opener.
"He's progressed to the point where we think that's possible," Carroll said. "I think it's really important. Hopefully we can put that together. If he has to do it in one week's time, we will. But we'd like to get two weeks under his belt. He's been running every day. He's been wearing his stuff and all that. But he needs to get in with the drill work and all that."
Ansah, who signed a one-year deal with Seattle in May, recently injured his groin while working out. That's what's keeping him out, as opposed to his surgically repaired shoulder, according to Carroll.
"His shoulder is fine," Carroll said. "His shoulder is back. He's as strong as he's ever been. Really, he came flying back in the last three or four weeks in that regard. So he's fine there. It's just a matter of just getting the groin to just quiet down so it doesn't reoccur."
Collier, Seattle's first-round pick, has been out since early in training camp with a sprained ankle. He's taken part in early warm-up periods of practice the past two days.
"He's on the ground running," Carroll said. "Next week he should be changing direction and all that. This should be a really big week for him next week. I've seen him out here bouncing around pretty good. He looks like he's ready to come back. So we've taken really good care of him throughout. We don't want to rush it at this point because it looks like he's clear to return here soon. So we'll see if we can race back in the next two weeks."
Carroll said guard Mike Iupati (foot, calf) and tackle George Fant (ankle) are expected to be ready by Week 1. Second-year linebacker Shaquem Griffin (knee bruise) will not play in the Seahawks' preseason game Saturday night against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Carroll also clarified that the injury that has kept safety Marquise Blair out this week is a back bruise, not back spasms. Blair, a second-round pick, is competing with Tedric Thompson and Lano Hill to start alongside Bradley McDougald. Hill will make his preseason debut Saturday, but his snaps will be limited, Carroll said.