The Seattle Seahawks got a surprise — or in the words of head coach Pete Carroll, “a jolt” — when quarterback Geno Smith suffered an unfortunate groin injury so close to Week 14's matchup versus a powerhouse in the form of the San Francisco 49ers (h/t Greg Bell of The News Tribune).

What was the effect of losing Smith so late in the preparation for San Francisco? “It was like a jolt,” Carroll said. “We got jolted by that.”

Smith sustained the lower-body injury during practice on Thursday before getting ultimately ruled out by the Seahawks for the meeting with the Niners. With Geno Smith out, the Seahawks were forced to start backup Drew Lock, who was an adventure versus the 49ers. Lock went 22-for-31 for 269 yards and two touchdowns in Week 14 but he was also intercepted twice and got sacked four times for a loss of 15 yards.

That might not be the last time Lock starts this season, with Smith's status for Week 15 up in the air.

But given the fact that Geno Smith was initially listed as questionable before getting ruled out of Week 14, it appears that he's got a great chance of returning to action in Week 15 when the Seahawks battle the Philadelphia Eagles at home.

The Seahawks are currently on the outside looking in of the playoff picture in the NFC with a 6-7 record. Smith gives Seattle higher ceiling than Lock, but the Seahawks could be hesitant in giving him the ball if he's not close to 100 percent form, especially during this important juncture of the season.