The next little bit of drama is always around the corner for the Seattle Seahawks and while the Earl Thomas portion of the drama was thought to be put to bed; something odd occurred on Friday that could be meaningful in the bigger picture or an issue the Seahawks chose not disclose that leads to nothing. The rub being head coach Pete Carroll was intentionally vague on the situation at hand; so it's unclear what exactly is going on. Thomas missed practice on Friday but as reporters on the scene noticed, he wasn't absent from practice. He just didn't take part. When challenged about the reasons Thomas wasn't suiting up for the practice, Carroll gave a series of limited responses. "He couldn't work today," he said when asked why he didn't practice. When asked if the situation was injury-related, Carroll insisted it was not saying he came out of Monday Night's game fine. The snap count and injury report back him up. Thomas appeared on the injury report this week with a non-football related absence and missed Wednesday practice, as his maintenance program continues from trying to work himself into game shape after missing all of training camp due to a holdout. He did practice on Thursday but obviously did not on Friday. He played all but 10 snaps in week one and all but one snap in week two. So there certainly is no sign of injury. Carroll wouldn't even cop to his game status. Despite not being listed as much as questionable on the injury report for Sunday's game, the veteran head coach was still very much unsure if Thomas would play versus the Dallas Cowboys in the home opener. "We'll see how he's doing. We'll make sure he's okay," he said. The Super Bowl winning coach did reveal the matter was of a personal nature but being Thomas was at practice and not away from the team, it doesn't leave many apparent options on the table. There was also this cryptic response when asked if he was injured. "No, he's got some other stuff going on we're working on," Carroll stated. Don't miss a single snap of the Seahawks game. Here’s how to catch it! The easiest avenue to square all of Pete Carroll's words would be a trade. The Seahawks have gotten to see how much Thomas means to their defense first hand over the first two weeks of the season with he and strong safety Bradley McDougald forming the best safety tandem in the league thus far, according to Pro Football Focus; however if they have no intention of re-signing Thomas, he must be traded before the week eight deadline since he'll be a free agent at season's end. The team could always franchise tag him but that option leaves both parties to battle it out for another year in similar fashion to 2018. In other words, they risk putting themselves in less than optimal locker room position along with decreasing his trade value. With the Atlanta Falcons ailing at safety, they make the most sense at the moment. The Dallas Cowboys the original most-likely suitor have been solid on defense with their young defensive back group and likely aren't looking to pay the sum the Seahawks want. They reportedly offered a second-round pick prior to Thomas' return from his holdout but that offer was rejected. Falcons coach Dan Quinn makes the most sense due to being a former Seahawks defensive coordinator who also runs a similar scheme. He set the modern template for how the Seahawks use Thomas and coached him to a Super Bowl as his coordinator in 2013 in Seattle. Or it could all be something else that Carroll refuses to talk about and Thomas will suit up against the Cowboys in week three, which will provide sparks of its own considering he went into their locker room and requested they "come get him" last season. All eyes would be or will be monitoring Thomas like a hawk (pun intended) on Sunday. If he makes it to Sunday.<doc-sep>Getty Images Before Sunday’s games got underway, Chris Mortensen of ESPN reported that the Seahawks are considering a significant fine for safety Earl Thomas after Thomas missed a pair of practices last week. Head coach Pete Carroll didn’t confirm or deny anything on that front after his team beat the Cowboys, but Thomas said he believes the team is “definitely going to tax me.” Thomas also suggested he’s fine with that being a tradeoff for not doing more than necessary for a team that has shown no interest in giving him a contract extension. “I need to make sure my body is 100,” Thomas said, via ESPN.com. “I’m invested in myself. If they was invested in me, I would be out there practicing. But if I feel like anything — I don’t give a damn if it’s small, I’ve got a headache — I’m not practicing. But I don’t want that to be taken the wrong way. I know I’m going to get fined. But that’s just where I’m at with that.” Thomas said several times this offseason that he wants a new contract or a trade to a team that will give him one, but wound up reporting to the Seahawks before Week One. The Cowboys came up often as a potential trade partner and Thomas said on Sunday that coaches from the team asked him if he’s “ready” for a trade on Monday, although he added he wasn’t sure if they were just joking around.<doc-sep>
The Seattle Seahawks may be without free safety Earl Thomas against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. Thomas missed practices this week but was listed on the report as non-injury related. His status for Sunday remains uncertain. “We’ll see how he’s doing,” Carroll told reporters Friday. “We’ll make sure he’s okay.” Carroll confirmed Thomas sat out practice for personal reasons. “He’s got some other stuff going on, we’re working on,” Carroll said. Thomas could now be looking at significant fines for remaining on the sidelines. The Seahawks are considering a significant fine to Earl Thomas for conduct detrimental for twice missing practice. No final decision made. He's expected to play vs. Cowboys AND the Chiefs have emerged as a possible trade partner if Thomas is dealt this year, per sources. — Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) September 23, 2018 “The Seattle Seahawks are considering levying a significant fine on safety Earl Thomas for conduct detrimental to the team because he missed practice twice this past week, according to organizational sources,” ESPN’s Chris Mortensen wrote Sunday morning. Thomas did attend Saturday’s walkthrough, according to the report, and the decision on whether or not to fine him has not been finalized. The All-Pro safety held out all offseason for a contract extension or a trade before reporting back to the Seahawks just days before the start of the regular season. Thomas has been repeatedly linked to Dallas, who supposedly offered Seattle a second-round draft pick late this summer. With the Week 3 matchup against the Cowboys on Sunday, this will definitely continue to be one of the storylines to watch.