Seattle Seahawks' Tight End John Carlson Is out for the Year

Goodbye John Carlson, we hardly knew ye. 

After a promising start to his Seahawks career just a few short years ago, one can imagine this is the last we will see of the former starting tight end in a 'Hawks uniform given he will be out for the year after needing surgery to repair a labrum tear.

Things are quickly going from bad to worse for the Seahawks and it's not even officially September. 

With Carlson gone, the two pronged tight end attack with Zach Miller is now dead and with it one of the few potential bright spots on either side of the ball for the upcoming season. 

I suppose we can take comfort that Zach Miller should be more than capable of filling the void and that the team has added depth with Anthony McCoy and Dominique Byrd both healthy and looking effective in the preseason.

However, the pairing of Miller with Carlson could have been special or at least comforting to watch as Tarvaris Jackson scrambles for his life week after week behind the team's porous offensive line.

Hopefully for Carlson, this is simply a sign from the cosmos for him to move on. 

It was unlikely that he would have been back next year given Miller's signing and the current depth at the position, but sadly now he will have lost two consecutive seasons to either injury or poor play/support and will likely see his value drop considerably on the free agent market. 

It's a shame to see a good player and good guy not even get the chance to compete for the job and raise his stock for next year.  I wish him luck, but it will be a tough road ahead. 

On a different, but equally difficult path, the Seahawks' offense is still to put it mildly, a work in progress.  As we get ready to turn the page on the preseason we are now left with far more questions than answers. 

Is Tarvaris Jackson really going to be the starting quarterback this season?  If so, how long?

Are the guys he's throwing to capable of staying healthy?  Sidney Rice and Mike Williams are tall and talented, but not necessarily sturdy. 

Will Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett be able to help move the chains or find themselves incapable of escaping the backfield?

Finally and perhaps most importantly, will Tom Cable's revamped offensive line actually manage to protect everybody, or for that matter...anybody? 

Steve Kelley at the Seattle Times reports of Cable's concern, "You don't have any more practice games (after Friday). You don't have any more do-overs. We don't panic. Nobody's saying, 'Oh, my god. Oh, my god.' You just say, 'It ain't good enough. Fix it.' "

Perhaps, but why do I picture him saying this while wearing a life jacket? 

Each passing week the number of projected wins for this crew keeps spiraling downwards. 

Losing John Carlson is hardly the tipping point for the Seahawks prospects for 2011, but his absence is just one more reason to wonder if this team has any fighting chance.