Tag Archives: Pete Carroll

It's bigger than football, The roster

Cliff Avril: A great leader and ‘statesman’

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Avril on NFLNThis day was destined to come, but it doesn’t make it any less sad to see a stellar player’s career end (at least in Seattle) due to injury.

If you measure the best by (1) how they played and (2) how they comported themselves on and off the field, Cliff Avril goes down as one of the best Seahawks ever. He was pure class as a player and remains so as a person. (Just check out his Players’ Tribune tribute to Seattle.)

As Pete Carroll said after rookie minicamp Friday: “He has been a great leader and a bit of a statesman for us. He always says the right thing and stands for the right stuff and he has been a really high-character guy who you can just always count on. He has been a great competitor in the program, and I love him, and we’d like to keep him connected with our club as long as we can, because he’s just exactly what you’d hope to represent you.”

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NFL draft, The roster

Hawks should have what they need for the O-line

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NFL draftSome — maybe even many — people thought the Seahawks screwed up by not drafting an offensive lineman before the late fifth round last weekend.

Sure, they could have selected Austin Corbett or Will Hernandez instead of Rashaad Penny with their first pick (after trading down, of course). But the Seahawks have put a lot of resources into the line over the past couple of years, and Pete Carroll obviously is betting Mike Solari will do a much better job with that talent than Tom Cable did.

Carroll is expecting Solari to boost the Hawks out of a two-year funk that has seen them rank second only to Detroit in fewest rushing yards by non-quarterbacks. (Russell Wilson’s 845 yards raise Seattle to 11th worst.)

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NFL draft, The roster

A look at the roster after the draft

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NFL draft“You never hear a doctor come out of a surgery, ‘You know what, I don’t know if that was such a good surgery.’” — John Schneider

As always, and as with every team, the Seahawks think their draft went well. Of course, they got their typical mixed reviews from analysts (the NFL’s worst grade in this composite) — understandable considering they drafted Rashaad Penny and Will Dissly higher than most ranked them and then traded up for a punter.

We’ve long known Schneider is not great at getting the best value for his picks — certainly not like the Patriots and some other teams are — but, throwing draft strategy out, it looks like the Hawks landed five roster locks and a couple of potential projects. And they kept Earl Thomas (reportedly ignoring Dallas’ offer of a third-round pick on Day 2).

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NFL draft

Will Penny be worth it?

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NFL draftEven Rashaad Penny did not expect to be drafted in the first round, which tells you all you need to know about whether the Seahawks made the right pick at the right time.

John Schneider and Pete Carroll said they had offers to move down from 27, but they obviously didn’t want to risk dropping too far and losing the running back to another team. Their fears might have been confirmed when a team apparently called right after they drafted Penny and offered to trade for the back. Schneider said he had never been offered a deal AFTER drafting a player.

Obviously some people think Penny, just the third back ever drafted in the first round by Seattle, is going to be great. For the pick to be worth it, though, Penny will need to become the primary rusher and score 8-10 touchdowns a year. To do that, new line coach Mike Solari will have to fix a run-blocking unit that was among the league’s worst last season.

If the Seahawks cannot fix the blocking and continue to use a rotation rather than riding Penny, he will have been a wasted pick.

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NFL draft

Last two drafts were bigger than this one

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NFL draftAs the Seahawks undergo the biggest roster reshuffle since Pete Carroll and John Schneider arrived in 2010, some are making the mistake of calling this the most important draft in the Schneider/Carroll era.

The simple fact is the last two drafts were more significant.

Every draft is important, but the Seahawks (with no picks on Day 2) are not set up for success in this one like they were in 2016 and 2017, when they had 11 picks in the first two days. Those players should be a big part of the team’s core in 2018-19. They need to come through this year — something Schneider has said more than once.

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NFL draft

Hawks are still figuring out how to draft

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NFL draftIt’s no secret that John Schneider’s Seahawks have been in a draft dry spell — and are still trying to choreograph the right rain dance. To that end, the Hawks apparently have changed the way they are preparing for the draft.

Since putting together their Super Bowl core in 2010-12, Schneider and company have added very few contributors. One study places the Seahawks in the bottom three in the NFL since 2013. Just three of 28 picks from the 2013-15 drafts remain, and only a handful of selections from the past two years have shown any promise — with last year’s Malik McDowell mistake hanging heavy around Schneider’s neck as the Hawks prepare for this week’s draft.

Schneider has blamed the run of ineffective drafts on three things: (1) A strong roster that made it tough to make the team, (2) ignoring red flags and making too many “excuses” for keeping risky players on their draft list and (3) not adding enough guys who were willing to compete with the Super Bowl vets.

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The roster, Trades

Schneider overrules Positive Pete on Thomas

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Pic -- Schneider at CombineNot long after Pete Carroll tried to quell any trade talk about Earl Thomas on Thursday, John Schneider made it clear the Seahawks are still listening.

“He’s a Seahawk. I don’t know what anybody’s talking about,” Carroll told KJR. “He’s a Seahawk and we’re happy to have him.”

Asked whether the safety would report for training camp, Carroll said, “He’d better be there. He’s on the roster. We’re counting on him.”

Asked why he was not at the offseason workout program, Carroll said, “Some guys make those choices. Not always do all of the players make it, for various reasons.”

A little while later, at his annual Ben’s Fund event, Schneider said Thomas would not hold out, but he also offered a much less optimistic take on the safety’s future with the team — basically the same stance the GM has had since the Combine.

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Free agency, NFL draft, The roster

Topic of the day: Quarterbacks

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Draft -- Schneider and CarrollQuarterbacks were the topic of the day for Pete Carroll and John Schneider on Thursday. The gist of their individual messages: Colin Kaepernick still could be an option (don’t count on it), Russell Wilson’s contract is not a problem (it really isn’t) and Schneider feels like he has done a poor job of acquiring quarterbacks behind Wilson (he has).

In separate interviews, Carroll and Schneider were asked about the recent Kaepernick brouhaha, and both waved off the protest topic and gave lip-service answers about their level of interest.

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Schedule

Tough road early, home night games late

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2018 skedThe good news: The Seahawks don’t have to play in Denver and Chicago during the winter. The bad news: They have to open with consecutive road games.

The opener in Denver and the Monday night game in Chicago in Week 2 mark the third time since 2011 the Hawks have started with two straight road games. They opened 0-2 in both 2011 and 2015.

Seattle’s 2018 schedule is weighted toward road games early and home games late: The Seahawks play five of the first seven on the road and four of the final five at home (three in prime time).

They have five prime-time games — four in Seattle, where the Hawks are 17-2 in night games (including playoffs) under Pete Carroll. They are 26-5-1 in prime time overall under Carroll.

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Free agency, The roster

Seahawks are right to avoid distractions

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Logo -- Free agencyThe Seahawks are trying to regain their focus this offseason and rebuild into another Super Bowl winner, which means they are right to avoid Colin Kaepernick if they feel he would be a distraction.

While we support NFL players who choose to use their platforms to make positive social statements and help their fellow citizens, teams have every right to do whatever they think is best in their pursuit of winning titles. Why? Because winning is the No. 1 priority. Good deeds and causes are nice, but not if they interfere with the entire purpose of the franchise’s existence.

Pete Carroll said Seattle’s activism last season became draining for the players, and he clearly wants to manage it better this year.

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