Robbie Ouzts, Elijah Arroyo Among Seahawks’ Inactives vs. Rams in NFC Championship Game

Seattle Seahawks fullback Robbie Ouzts (40) warms up before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

SEATTLE, Wash. - After missing practice time this week due to a neck injury, the Seattle Seahawks will be without fullback Robbie Ouzts among their inactives for Sunday’s NFC Championship Game rematch at Lumen Field.

In addition to Ouzts being sidelined, Seattle won’t have the services of injured reserve tackle Amari Kight, who sat out all three practices this week with a bruised knee. Veteran Josh Jones, who received a questionable designation in Friday’s final injury report, will be active as the swing tackle behind Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas.

Injuries unfortunately have been a problem for Ouzts during his rookie campaign with the Seahawks, as the fifth-round pick out of Alabama missed four games on injured reserve with a high ankle sprain from Week 4 to Week 7. He also was a healthy scratch for a Week 15 win over the Colts.

Not having Ouzts in the lineup won’t necessarily preclude Seattle from deploying two-back personnel groupings in Klint Kubiak’s offense, as versatile tight end Brady Russell has played 49 snaps as a fullback over the course of the season. But he only played three snaps at the position against the Colts and only has played double digit snaps at fullback in one game this season, doing so in a Week 7 home win over Houston on Monday Night Football.

At the tackle spots, Cross will be back in action on the left side after exiting in the second half of the Divisional Round against the 49ers with a foot injury. Jones will suit up for the first time for the Seahawks since gutting out a 13-3 victory in Santa Clara in Week 18, as he sat out last weekend recovering from knee and ankle injuries.

In a somewhat surprising development, only a few days after being activated off injured reserve and added to the 53-man roster, rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo won’t dress for the Seahawks as a healthy scratch and will miss his sixth consecutive game. The team will have four tight ends - AJ Barner, Eric Saubert, Nick Kallerup, and Russell - available against the Rams.

Following Zach Charbonnet’s season-ending ACL injury, Seattle elevated both Cam Akers and Velus Jones Jr. from the practice squad as additional running back insurance on Saturday. However, with George Holani activated from injured reserve and expected to serve as the No. 2 back behind Ken Walker III, only Akers will be in uniform on Sunday, providing a chance for him to play against the team that drafted him out of Florida State.

Capping off Seattle’s inactives list for the NFC Championship Game, second-year guard Christian Haynes will be held out as a healthy scratch. This likely means if an injury strikes at either guard spot, center Jalen Sundell will slide into the vacant position and Olu Oluwatimi will enter the lineup at the pivot position. Quarterback Jalen Milroe will serve as the Seahawks’ emergency third quarterback and fellow rookie defensive end Jared Ivey will also be a healthy scratch due to a numbers game in the trenches on defense.