Zach Charbonnet to start season on PUP list, but a rule change could benefit him

The Seattle Seahawks opted to keep just the three running backs during their cut down to their initial 53-man roster on Sunday. Jadarian Price, George Holani, and Emanuel Wilson will be the trio for the early portion of the season, all while Zach Charbonnet recovers from his ACL surgery.

As expected, the Seahawks kept Charbonnet on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list to start the regular season. He will have to miss a minimum of four games before he’s eligible to return, so the earliest he could make his debut is Week 5 versus the San Francisco 49ers. It’s worth noting, however, that Week 5 and 6 is a Sunday-Thursday short week, so if they want to be safe then his debut could be Week 7 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

One thing to note regarding Charbonnet’s PUP status is an NFL rule change enacted this season. Charbonnet, whose offseason recovery has seemingly gone smoothly, can have his 21-day practice window activated after the second regular season game is completed. Previously, a practice window couldn’t be opened until after the four games were up, so if Charbonnet could be ready to return to practice as early as Week 3.

There’s no rush to have Charbonnet available for that 49ers game, but it’d be a full circle moment if his first game back is against the same opponent he scored the only touchdown against in the de facto NFC West title showdown, as well as the same foe in which his season cruelly ended.