The Seattle Seahawks are winless through two games in the 2026 NFL preseason, but that’s the least of their worries right now, especially with rookie defensive back Bud Clark suffering a serious injury in Sunday’s meeting with the Tennessee Titans.
Clark went down with a right ankle injury right out of the gate, and he had to be carted off the field after the first defensive play of the contest at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
Apparently, Clark’s injury is so severe that he is expected to miss “multiple months,” Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said, via NFL insider Adam Schefter of ESPN.
This is a tough blow for Clark, who was in the mix for the Seahawks’ starting safety job after Coby Bryant left the team in the offseason. With Clark sidelined, Ty Okada can perhaps be expected to lock up the starting role opposite Julian Love.
The 24-year-old Clark was selected by Seattle in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft as the class’ 64th selection overall after a long college football stint with the TCU Horned Frogs. In six seasons with the Big 12 program, Clark posted 15 interceptions, 21 passes defended, and 214 combined tackles through 61 games.
Clark’s exact timetable for his return from injury has yet to be determined, but he’s not expected to be on the field in the reigning Super Bowl champion’s season opener.
Seattle will open its 2026 campaign on Sept. 9 in a Super Bowl rematch against the New England Patriots at Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash.
