RENTON -- The Seahawks will see the return of defensive lineman Ziggy Ansah and Poona Ford to the lineup Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.
However, cornerback is now in question as Tre Flowers will be a game-time decision due to an ankle injury sustained in practice on Thursday.
Ansah will his Seahawks debut on Sunday after being held out for the first two games of the season due to continued recovery from offseason surgery on his shoulder.
"Ziggy is ready to play, ready to play football," Carroll said. "We're excited to see that. It's been a really good process to get him to this where he's in good shape too. He's worked hard and long. ... We'll be able to get him a bunch of plays here in this game and look forward to his participation with us."
Ansah said his conditioning is in a great place as it was the only thing he was able to do for a large portion of his recovery process. The decision to hold him out the first two games was a group decision to make sure he was ready for the long haul.
"It's a marathon and not a sprint," Ansah said. "If I was good enough, I would be on the field. It was a collective decision that we made comes through the doctors, the head coach, the medical staff and myself. Whenever we all think it's right for me to be out there, I'll be out there.
"Besides knocking off all this rust, just taking reps. Like some of the older guys say, it doesn't matter how long you've been in the league for, you still that practice reps to get yourself ready for the game."
Ansah said he's looking forward to playing with Jadeveon Clowney, who wasn't part of the team when Ansah chose to sign with Seattle in May.
"I'm super excited to play with him," Ansah said. "He's a great guy off the field and we all know what he can do on the field. So whenever I get an opportunity to play with him that would be great and I'm looking forward to that."
Ford missed last week's game in Pittsburgh after a calf strain sustained in the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals.
"Poona did a really good job this week," Carroll said. "He made it through the whole week of work so he's definitely back and ready to go. It was a great recovery. It just took a week to get him back."
If Flowers is unable to play for Seattle, they'll likely be down two cornerbacks against one of the more explosive offenses in the NFL. Neiko Thorpe will likely miss a second straight game due to a hamstring strain that occurred against the Bengals. Thorpe is officially listed as doubtful for Seattle. If Flowers and Thorpe are both sidelined, the Seahawks will have only Akeem King, Jamar Taylor and Ugo Amadi available at cornerback outside of starter Shaquill Griffin.
Carroll said it's a minor issue for Flowers, but they'll have to see how he bounces back after injuring it in practice on Thursday.
"He turned his ankle yesterday," Carroll said. "I can't you what's going to happen. We'll take him up to game-time on that one. It wasn't severe at all but something happened that we had to hold him back."
The Seahawks could elevate Parry Nickerson from their practice squad by 1 p.m. on Saturday if they believe Flowers is going to be unavailable and that more depth at the position in necessary. Nickerson was initially acquired from the New York Jets in a trade for a conditional draft pick over cut-down weekend being being waived and re-signed to the practice squad after Week 1.
Even without quarterback Drew Brees, who is out after thumb surgery on Wednesday, the Saints have a number of weapons that will challenge Seattle's defense.
Wide receiver David Moore is also set to make his season debut for Seattle after missing the first two weeks due to a hairline fracture in his humerus bone. Moore injured his shoulder in a practice three weeks ago and knew immediately something was wrong, but
"Fell on it, automatically knew something was wrong," Moore said. "They said it was minor. They said it could take up to 4-6 (weeks) and I told them 'let's try to do it in three.' It all depends on how well my bone heals and how long it will take for that.
"I was feeling good last week but they wanted me to hold off a little bit because they didn't want me to go and rush it so I understood that. Now, it's all go. Full-go."
Guard/center Ethan Pocic is doubtful to play due to a neck injury, but Joey Hunt is going to be available after missing the first two weeks due to a high-ankle sprain sustained in the final preseason game against the Oakland Raiders.
Running back Rashaad Penny is also questionable after tweaking his hamstring in the latter stages of the team's Friday practice. He will be a game-time decision as well.
"Penny just came up a little bit today so we held him back a little bit. He'll end up on the injury report with a hamstring," Carroll said.
Safety Tedric Thompson remains questionable as well due to a hamstring strain and will be a game-time decision. Lano Hill would start again in his place should be be unable to go.
And since it's the news of the day in the NFL, Carroll was asked about the prospect of Antonio Brown considering he had confirmed the team inquired about the former All-Pro receiver when he was released by the Oakland Raiders. Now that he's been released by the New England Patriots as well amid more sexual assault allegations, the Seahawks interest appears to have been reduced to zero.
"We're pretty well set right now. We kind of know where we're going with that," Carroll said.
Injury Report:
Photo Credit: SEATTLE, WA - SEPTEMBER 08: Tre Flowers #21 of the Seattle Seahawks smiles as he runs off the field after recovering a Cincinnati Bengals fumble with less than a minute left in the game at CenturyLink Field on September 8, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. The Seahawks beat the Bengals 21-20 in their season opener. (Photo by Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images)