Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider was asked Wednesday whether cornerback DeShawn Shead will be healthy for the start of the 2017 season.

“For the start of the season? I wouldn’t think so,” Schneider said.

Shead suffered a knee injury in the Seahawks’ divisional round loss to the Atlanta Falcons. He tore his ACL, but coach Pete Carroll said after the season that it was a “really significant” injury, indicating there was additional damage.

Shead, a restricted free agent, started all but one game at right cornerback last season and played well. He was in line to start opposite Richard Sherman once again in 2017 before suffering the injury.

Now, suddenly, cornerback is a glaring need for the Seahawks.

“It pushes it up,” Schneider admitted, later adding, “Everybody’s like, ‘We’re not going to draft for need.’ Well, in this day and age, you kind of have to.”

The Seahawks have some relatively unknown young cornerback options such as DeAndre Elliott, Pierre Desir and pending free agent Neiko Thorpe. They’ve done a great job with player development at this position in the past. Shead worked his way up from a practice squad player to become a starter. Sherman was originally a fifth-round pick. And Byron Maxwell was a sixth-round selection.

But Seattle will look to add more options in the weeks ahead.

Free agency has been unkind to them in the past with Cary Williams failing to make it through the whole season in 2015. Seahawks coaches have said that free agents often have difficulty picking up their particular step-kick technique. Carroll hinted strongly after Williams was released that he prefers to build cornerback through the draft with young players who have not played in other NFL systems.

This year’s class is loaded with options who fit what the Seahawks are looking for. Under Carroll and Schneider, they have never drafted a corner before the fourth round, but this could be a year where they buck that trend.

Meanwhile, at left corner, Sherman is coming off a tumultuous season in which he was involved in sideline shouting matches with defensive coordinator Kris Richard and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell on separate occasions. Schneider, however, said that the organization’s view of Sherman has not changed.

“No, he’s an elite player,” Schneider said. “I think everybody has bad days. Congratulations if you don’t. But we love him. He’s an elite player.”

At safety, Kam Chancellor, who had an ankle cleanup procedure, is entering the final year of his deal and will be looking for a contract extension.

And Earl Thomas is recovering from a broken leg he suffered in Week 3.

As long as Carroll is the coach, the secondary will be a focus. But the Seahawks have questions to answer and moves to make this offseason to ensure that the pass defense is positioned for success in 2017.

The Baltimore Ravens came to the NFL combine knowing they need to upgrade at cornerback, improve their pass rush and bolster their wide receivers.

The Ravens, though, don’t have any problems with confidence despite missing the playoffs in three of the past four seasons.

“There is no doubt in my mind that we will contend for a championship next year,” coach John Harbaugh said Wednesday in Indianapolis.

Why is Harbaugh so optimistic following an 8-8 season?

“The biggest thing in terms of where we are as a football team is the fact that we have a quarterback,” Harbaugh said. “We have a championship-caliber quarterback. We have a guy who is capable of carrying a football team and has done it in the past.”

That quarterback, Joe Flacco, has come under scrutiny since leading the Ravens to a Super Bowl in 2012. He is among the highest-paid players in the NFL, even though he is statistically not among the best quarterbacks.

INDIANAPOLIS — The Los Angeles Rams placed the nonexclusive franchise tag on Trumaine Johnson for a second straight year Wednesday, a move that puts him on track to be the NFL’s highest-paid cornerback in 2017.

The two sides still have until July 15 to come to terms on a long-term extension, but that seems unlikely.

Johnson, a third-round pick out of Montana in 2012, is the first cornerback to be tagged in back-to-back years since Charles Woodson in 2004 and ’05. Johnson made $13.952 million when he was tagged in 2016 and will now get a 20 percent raise that will put his upcoming salary at about $16.75 million.

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  A lack of depth behind Trumaine Johnson forced the Rams’ hand, as the team put the nonexclusive franchise tag on the corner for a second straight year.

The New York Giants aren’t going to pass on an opportunity to explore the possibility of signing future Hall of Fame running back Adrian Peterson. Coach Ben McAdoo said they will “take a look” at the available running back.

Peterson was informed Monday that his 2017 option would not be picked up by the Minnesota Vikings. He will become a free agent on March 9, and had previously mentioned the Giants as one of the teams that would intrigue him as a possible landing spot.

Despite his age, recent injuries and past troubles, McAdoo did not rule out the possibility it could happen. Instead, he grouped Peterson in with all the available free agents.

“We’ll go take a look at him,” McAdoo told reporters at the NFL combine. “We’ll evaluate him, get a grade on anyone that is available and we’ll make those decisions in terms of what is best for the Giants moving forward.”

It seems unlikely that Peterson would land with the Giants considering his expected price and fit in the offense. Nearly 95 percent of his career carries have come with the quarterback under center, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The Giants ran 72 percent of their offensive plays out of the shotgun last season.

Peterson, 31, will gauge his market over the next week, placing an emphasis on a team he believes is a serious contender for a Super Bowl. The door still appears to remain open for a possible return to Minnesota.

The Giants could use a veteran running back after releasing starter Rashad Jennings last month. They have Shane Vereen and Paul Perkins as the only two running backs with experience currently on the roster.