Seahawks will be without 3 defensive starters vs 49ers. 3 more questionable, but...

The Seahawks will be missing three starters on a recently ransacked defense, for their biggest test yet.

The team officially declared 2022 Pro Bowl cornerback Riq Woolen, key outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu and rookie first-round draft choice Byron Murphy out for their NFC West game Thursday night, when the first-place Seahawks (3-2) host their NFC West-rival San Francisco 49ers (2-3) at Lumen Field (5:15 p.m., channel 13 locally).

Pro Bowl safety Julian Love is questionable, though he was participating at the start of practice on a sore hamstring. Coach Mike Macdonald said Love is likely to be a game-time decision on playing Thursday night.

K’Von Wallace is the third safety who would play with starter Rayshawn Jenkins, if Love can’t go.

Woolen was not at the start of the Seahawks’ second consecutive practice in T-shirts and, for some including Love, bucket hats. That’s the extent of the exertion Macdonald has required of his players in the three days since they lost a second consecutive game, last weekend at home to the New York Giants.

Woolen walked off the field with teammates at the end of practice Wednesday.

The Seahawks have 10 days between playing the 49ers Thursday night and their next game, at Atlanta Oct. 20.

“We’ll see next week,” Macdonald said of Woolen. “But he looks good right now. He’s moving around all right.

“He’s just not ready to go this game.”

Seattle will be without Murphy for the third consecutive game. The defensive tackle and 16th pick in this spring’s NFL draft remains out with a hamstring injury.

Nwosu is going on injured reserve, Macdonald said. He’s out with the thigh injury he got 20 snaps into the Giants game four days ago.

The belief is Nwosu will miss more than the minimum four games players are on injured reserve must miss, per NFL rules, but that he will be able to return to play late this season.

“Timeline, we’re not sure,” Macdonald said. “We think there’s a really good chance to get him back by the end of the season.”

The Seahawks had not put Nwosu on IR officially as of the league’s transaction wire Wednesday. They could do it Thursday, and sign a reinforcement to the active roster for the game Thursday night.

That could be cornerback Artie Burns from the practice squad. More on that in a minute.

The outside linebacker replacing Nwosu, team sack leader Derick Hall, is questionable for Thursday’s game. The 2023 second-round draft choice has a foot injury.

Boye Mafe also is questionable to play. He returned to the light practices this week. The other starting outside linebacker has missed the last two games with an injured knee. He was the co-leader in sacks with Hall before he got hurt.

Macdonald said the team believes Hall and Mafe will be able to start against the 49ers.

Options without Riq Woolen

Woolen injured his ankle last weekend in the first half of the team’s home loss to the New York Giants. He returned to the game, then re-injured his lower right leg in the second half.

Rookie draft choice Nehemiah Pritchett replaced Woolen at cornerback opposite Pro Bowl corner Devon Witherspoon in base defense and, more often, opposite Tre Brown in nickel when Witherspoon went to his usual spot inside with five defensive backs on the field.

With three days’ preparation and 49ers coach and play caller Kyle Shanahan’s penchant for attacking inexperienced defenders, the Seahawks could choose to elevate the veteran Burns from their practice squad for Thursday’s game. Burns, the former first-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers who’s also started for the Chicago Bears, had success as a backup nickel back in games last season and this preseason. In that scenario of Burns at nickel, Witherspoon could stay outside at cornerback opposite Brown against San Francisco.

Uchenna Nwosu’s injuries continue

Nwosu has played in just seven of a possible 22 games since he re-signed with Seattle on a $45 million contract extension before the 2023 season. That was after his career-high 9 1/2 sacks co-led the team in 2022.

He missed the final 11 games of last season following a torn quadriceps. He missed a month past the first four games of this season because of a sprained knee. He was returning against New York last weekend from a sprained medical collateral ligament in his left knee. He got that Aug. 24 when Cleveland guard Wyatt Teller cut blocked him early in the final preseason game.

Twenty snaps into his first real game in 12 months, he injured his thigh.