Seattle Seahawks defensive back Julian Love opened up about the “killer” hamstring setback that derailed his season and explained how he’s handling the first significant injury layoff of his football life. He detailed his journey in a press conference on December 4.
Love, who had never missed a game due to injury in high school, college or the NFL, described how the hamstring worsened during a practice right before the bye week and how the team now has a plan to ramp him back up as Seattle pushes toward the playoffs.
Julian Love Calls Hamstring Setback ‘Killer’ Before Seahawks Bye
Love said the setback happened on the practice field in the lead-up to the team’s bye. What was supposed to be a chance to reset turned into one of the most frustrating stretches of his career.
He explained that the hamstring “just got worse” during that session, calling it a setback “none of us wanted” that had “a lasting effect.” Instead of a relaxing bye week, he admitted he was “pretty fired up” over the timing and the lost opportunity to get back on the field.
For a player who prides himself on availability, the mental side has been as tough as the physical. Love pointed out that before this year, he had never missed a game for injury at any level, so figuring out how to navigate rehab and long weeks on the sideline was completely new.
“It’s football season — I’m meant to be playing football,” he said, describing the ups and downs of watching from the bench and feeling at times like a “cheerleader” or “coach” instead of a core piece of the defense.
What It Means for the Seahawks & the Atlanta Plan
Love didn’t spell out exactly when he’ll be back in a full role, but he made it clear there’s already a roadmap in place. Asked directly about the plan for Atlanta, he smiled and said there is a plan — even if he “can’t say” the details yet — and that it’s focused on ramping him up the right way.
That’s good news for a Seattle defense that has leaned heavily on its depth in the secondary. Love praised teammates like Ty Okada, Coby Bryant and others for stepping up, calling Okada “a ball player” who has earned his snaps after years of practice-squad work and shouting out Bryant’s growing leadership voice on the back end.
Even while sidelined, Love has tried to be a glue guy in the room. He’s stayed locked in on the headset, communicating what he sees, calming younger players down and offering coaching points between series. He said he had to remind himself that his value isn’t just in the plays he makes, but also in how he talks, leads and helps everyone around him.
If he can get all the way back physically, the Seahawks get the best of both worlds: a versatile defensive back who can move around the formation and a veteran leader who already has the trust of the locker room.
Love Embraces ‘Chip on My Shoulder’ Mindset in Comeback
Love admitted the long rehab has given him a bit of an edge. He described having “a chip on my shoulder, a little FU” for anyone questioning when he’d be back or what he still has left as a player.
Like most injured veterans, he’s had to fight through a lot of internal conversations: overanalyzing every run, wondering how the hamstring responded, asking himself if he can really go full speed. But that all changes, he says, when he finally steps into the huddle again.
As soon as teammates greet him and they break the huddle, the doubt fades and his mindset shifts back to, “I do this. I’m a good football player.”
Between the frustration of the setback, the “killer” bye week and the quiet work behind the scenes, Love’s comeback is shaping up as equal parts physical and mental. And if the ramp-up plan for Atlanta goes the way he and the Seahawks hope, his next chapter could be one of the most important of Seattle’s season.
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