Pete Carroll described Russell Wilson as "one of the great healers of all time" but is not yet sure how long a "badly sprained finger" will keep the Seattle Seahawks' quarterback out of action for.

Wilson damaged the middle finger of his throwing hand during Thursday's damaging 26-17 loss to the Los Angeles Rams that left the Seahawks 2-3 in the NFC West.

He managed to return for one series only to be replaced by Geno Smith, who led one touchdown drive before throwing for an interception that ultimately sealed the game for the 4-1 Rams.

Seahawks head coach Carroll said he was unsure if Wilson will need surgery and added: "There is a lot of work to be done in assessing all of that. 

"Russell is one of the great healers of all time and he'll do whatever he can to get back as soon as absolutely possible."

Wilson finished with 11-of-16 passing for 152 yards, a touchdown and an interception from a tipped throw, while Smith was 10-of-17 for 131 yards and also added 23 rushing yards.

Television pictures showed Wilson's finger bent in an unnatural position, while he was examined for several minutes by medical personnel on the Seahawks' bench.

"He wasn't able to hold onto the football the way he needed to, to throw it, because we were going to throw the ball, and we needed to throw it all over the place," Carroll added.

"We didn't know what he would be able to do. He was just unsure. If he could have, he would have."

Smith entered the fray early in the fourth quarter and completed a 23-yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf on the back of a 10-play, 98-yard drive. At that point, Smith was five-for-five and the Seahawks had trimmed the deficit to 16-14.

"Geno did a really, really good job, very much in command," Carroll said. 

"We were able to do all kinds of things with him out there. He handled all the communications beautifully and played really well. 

"We had a chance to win a football game. With all of that, we had a chance to win the football game with the ball in our hands and couple minutes to go."