Leroy

Hill

D.D. Lewis will start for Hill on the weak side and makes a nice last-minute pickup if at all possible. Green is the third QB.

If Hill can’t go, LB D.D. Lewis will likely start in his place.

Hill departed in the fourth quarter and was unable to return. He had five tackles before leaving.

Hill suffered a mild strain in last Sunday’s win over the Giants. He has 31 tackles, one forced fumble and one sack through five games.

Hill and his girlfriend agreed to urine tests immediately after their arrests, and both passed. The prosecution thus dropped charges. The chances of Hill re-signing with the Seahawks likely increased significantly with this news. The physical 29-year-old racked up 89 tackles and four sacks last season.

Hill is coming off an impressive bounce-back season with 89 tackles and four sacks, playing 87 percent of the Seahawks’ snaps in 2011. Even though the charges were eventually dismissed, Hill killed his market with his third arrest in four years back in February. He should be penciled in as the weak-side starter once again.

The drugs were discovered when police dogs were performing “random floor checks” by Hill’s apartment, following a neighbor’s complaint. Upon entry, officers observed marijuana “blunts” in plain sight, along with marijuana residue. Hill and his girlfriend were both arrested. The 29-year-old Hill has now been arrested three times over the past three years, once for another marijuana charge and again for domestic violence. He was suspended one game and two additional game checks in 2010, and is now surely facing a lengthier ban.

Hill’s Saturday arrest for marijuana possession was his third arrest in four years. Limited to one game by an Achilles injury in 2010, Hill bounced back to notch 89 tackles and four sacks last season, but simply isn’t worth the headache heading into his age-30 campaign. He’ll likely draw little interest on the open market before the beginning of training camp.

“He should have a chance to be better,” coach Pete Carroll said. “He was close [last week], but he couldn’t play after the workout in pregame.” 2011 seventh-rounder Malcolm Smith played well in Hill’s absence at Chicago in Week 13.

The King County (Washington) prosecutor’s office couldn’t find “sufficient cause” to move forward with charges. Hill could still face misdemeanor charges. The eight-year veteran hasn’t drawn a whiff of interest in free agency.