Roster move and timeline
The Seattle Seahawks have designated Zach Charbonnet to return to practice, opening the 21-day window that allows him to work back onto the active roster without counting against the 53-man limit.
Charbonnet is not expected to play in Week 4 but could be eligible to return as soon as Week 5, and the team will have a 21-day window to decide whether to activate him or revert him to the PUP list.
The designation follows ACL surgery Charbonnet underwent on February 20 after sustaining the injury in the team’s Divisional Round victory over the San Francisco 49ers. The move marks a major step in the 25-year-old’s recovery process.
What Charbonnet brings back to Seattle
When healthy, Charbonnet has shown playmaking ability and scoring upside that the Seahawks' current backfield has lacked. In 2025 he appeared in 16 games, carrying the ball 184 times for 730 yards (4.0 yards per carry) and 12 rushing touchdowns, and added 20 receptions for 144 yards.
Seattle drafted Charbonnet 52nd overall in the 2023 draft and signed him to a four-year, $6,876,080 rookie contract that includes a $2,000,785 signing bonus; the contract carried a $1,875,294 cap figure in 2025.
With the Seahawks experiencing a slow start to their rushing attack this season, Charbonnet’s return to practice offers a clear opportunity for the ground game to stabilize. Sporting News described the roster move as “massive news,” saying that getting Charbonnet back would be significant for the offense.
Recovery realities and short-term expectations
The 21-day practice window lets coaches evaluate Charbonnet’s health, timing and readiness after his ACL repair. He can practice during that period without counting toward the 53-man roster limit; after the window closes the team must either activate him or revert him to the PUP list for the rest of the year.
For fantasy managers and front-office evaluators alike, the available evidence draws a line between realistic expectation and upside: Yahoo! News called Charbonnet an intriguing stash for fantasy leagues once he is cleared to return, while the Seahawks and medical staff will be focused primarily on his on-field readiness rather than immediate workload.
Charbonnet’s medical clearance and how the Seahawks choose to reintegrate him—whether as a rotational option at first or with an expanded role—will determine how quickly his proven 2025 production can translate into a meaningful lift for a run game that has underperformed early in the season.
