Tag Archives: Pete Carroll

NFL draft

Seahawks poised to have huge Day 2

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NFL draftThe Seahawks are poised for a big day — one that should satisfy a couple of needs and possibly bring a couple of so-called luxury picks.

The Hawks are one of four teams with four picks today — set up to dominate the tail end of the day, with three picks in the final nine.

Pete Carroll called it “the meat part of this draft,” and John Schneider said, “It’s going to be a blast.”

“It’s huge — huge for us picking three times in the third round,” Schneider said. “We pick at 56 tomorrow, and then we have nine more picks, so that’s really exciting for us. … We feel like it’s a solid draft all the way through.”

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NFL draft, The roster

Guy named Lynch helped Seahawks win Day 1

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NFL draftIt figures that a guy named Lynch had a lot to do with the Seahawks winning big on the first day of the NFL draft.

Marshawn is retired (we think), but Paxton is just coming into the league, and the Seahawks took advantage of that and an unexpected first-round development to end up with a double win.

While they didn’t move out of the first round for the fourth straight year, as it seemed they would, they did better: They traded down just five spots and added another third-round pick while helping their offensive line with Texas A&M’s Germain Ifedi.

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NFL draft, State of the team, Trades

No apparent interest in a veteran tackle

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There’s no sign the Seahawks were interested in Ryan Clady, despite their major need at left tackle, but apparently — if they had been interested — they could have gotten him for a Day 3 pick and $6 million.

That’s what the Jets reportedly gave the Broncos on Sunday — replacing the retiring D’Brickashaw Ferguson with Clady, who was available because Denver signed Russell Okung away from the Seahawks. Instead of possibly replacing Okung in Seattle, Clady is joining former Seahawks James Carpenter and Breno Giacomini in New York.

The Seahawks apparently have no interest in adding another veteran tackle before the draft. As John Schneider told 710 ESPN last week: “We addressed (the offensive line) early in free agency, we’ll address it again in the draft and then we’ll see what’s happening this summer.”

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Free agency, State of the team

Still ‘tinkering,’ GM thinks Hawks are ‘very close’ to Super again

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Wilson and SchneiderIn the aftermath of the Seahawks’ stunning 43-8 demolition of the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII, it sure seemed like the foundation of a dynasty had been laid.

A year later, sitting on the goal line at the end of Super Bowl XLIX, the Seahawks were poised to finish off the second floor of the three-story dynastic castle. But coaching mistakes ruined their first shot at that rare achievement.

First, Pete Carroll allowed Darrell Bevell to make the worst play call in Super Bowl history, and then Carroll followed it up by fielding a ridiculously overmatched offensive line in a stunningly underachieving 2015 season.

When you raise expectations the way Carroll and John Schneider have over the past four years, anything short of winning it all is total failure. The Seahawks were primed to become one of the league’s rare dynasties, and they screwed it up.

Now, as they begin Part III of the PJ Era, they think they can quickly recapture the spirit of 2013 and return to the Super Bowl.

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NFL draft, State of the team

More O-linemen to come, but when?

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NFL draftDRAFT COUNTDOWN: 5 weeks. Every Thursday until the draft, we look at draft-related topics involving the Seahawks.

As positively as they try to spin it, it is clear Pete Carroll and John Schneider are not finished with their offensive line.

Carroll said Garry Gilliam can handle left tackle, Justin Britt will improve at left guard, Mark Glowinski is ready to start at right guard and J’Marcus Webb can be better at right tackle for them than he has been for other teams.

Carroll said Gilliam is “an athlete who is really equipped to play” left tackle, Glowinski is “a natural guard” who should “be a big factor” and Britt “is just going to continue grow as a guard.”

“We think those guards give us a really secure spot with big upside,” he said.

But there’s no way the Seahawks are going to training camp with just these guys and center Patrick Lewis. Even on the off chance that they do not add a veteran before the draft next month, they certainly are going to add at least a couple linemen during the draft.

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State of the team

Schneider, Carroll answer personnel questions

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In addition to stating that Kam Chancellor will return to the Seahawks this year, John Schneider on Tuesday confirmed the Seahawks’ offensive line situation is indeed as shaky as we all think it is. He also discussed the plan for replacing Bruce Irvin and waved off any silly concerns that Marshawn Lynch is not really retiring.

With Russell Okung and J.R. Sweezy gone, the Seahawks’ line projects (from left to right) as Garry Gilliam, Justin Britt, Patrick Lewis, Mark Glowinski and J’Marcus Webb. If the Seahawks entered the season with that group, they would be in worse shape than they were with the 2015 line.

At the league meetings in Florida, Schneider confirmed that is where they are right now. And he hinted that the team might not add anyone before the draft.

As the line is constituted, Gilliam would battle career backup Bradley Sowell at left tackle while Webb would step in at right tackle, where Gilliam started in 2015. Schneider admitted they are grasping at straws, calling Sowell and Webb “prove-it signings.”

“That’s kind of the stage we are at right now,” the GM told The Seattle Times.

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Contracts, State of the team

Is Chancellor going to play nice or play elsewhere?

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Kam Chancellor during the fourth quarter against Denver (Getty)Either Kam Chancellor is planning to play nice with the Seahawks this year or he is starting up a PR campaign.

How else do you explain the post Wednesday in which he said, “I’m not going anywhere. Seattle is my second home. I don’t plan on going anywhere unless some higher power places me elsewhere. #Loyalty #12s #LOB”

That clearly is a response to speculation that he might be traded this offseason — the logical assumption after he held out through the first two games last season and then appeared to play it safe after he came back (how many Bam Bam hits do you remember?).

Chancellor obviously is speaking to fans, perhaps trying to win back some of those who soured on him after his 2015 shenanigans. And he also is trying to absolve himself of any blame if the Seahawks — “some higher power” — do end up trading him.

But let’s get one thing straight: If the Seahawks do end up trading him, as many of us think they will, he will be the one to blame.

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It's bigger than football, NFL Combine, NFL draft

Carroll: Clark ‘a great kid in the program’

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Frank ClarkA year ago at this time, the Seahawks were in the process of vetting Frank Clark — the controversial pass rusher they were targeting at the bottom of the second round.

They were ripped for the pick by almost every mainstream media outlet, and The Seattle Times did its own reverse investigation into Clark’s domestic incident and criticized the Seahawks’ background research into Clark. (For the record, we told everyone to lay off and trust the judgment of Pete Carroll and John Schneider.)

Not surprisingly (to us), Clark made it through his first season without drawing another bad word from anyone, and Carroll said Monday that the team monitored Clark closely — he reportedly continued counseling that he had started in Michigan — and “he was a great kid in the program.”

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CHAWK LINES, Free agency, NFL Combine
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chawk lines -- Combine

Combine logoAsked about Michael Bennett and Kam Chancellor, Pete Carroll said, “Really, the guys who are under contract can’t be the first-priority guys right now, in any order. We are really digging in, trying to keep our team together. And that will always be the way we go about it. We love Kam and Mike … and we are going to do all we can to make sure they can stay with us.”

Hiring Doug Hendrickson shows Bennett’s Lynch-like strategy.

Carroll said Jimmy Graham might not be ready until the end of training camp. That shadows our thought that the Seahawks will take it slow with him.

John Schneider talked about Marshawn Lynch and other topics.

Lynch is headed to Egypt for American Football Without Barriers — a group co-created by former Seahawk Breno Giacomini.

The offensive line is a major point of emphasis this offseason, although Carroll and Schneider don’t seem to concerned.

Russell Okung says, “It’s very possible that I could stay here. But I know my value, and I’m not going to settle for anything less than that.”

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Contracts, Free agency

Okung, Schneider have talked, but expect LT to hit free agency

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Russell Okung talks with GM John Schneider during minicamp in June (AP)Russell Okung and John Schneider already have had contract talks, and it is no surprise that the talented but injury-prone left tackle is going to hit free agency March 9.

“We’ve had some conversations. We’ve been going back and forth,” Okung told ESPN.com. “It’s going to come down to when free agency starts. So we may figure something out; we may not. It’s up in the air for now for us to come to terms.”

The Seahawks probably are not willing to pay Okung much more than they did on his rookie deal: $8 million a year. And he surely wants to hit the $10 million mark. The only way to find out whether some team will pay him is to become a free agent.

Actually, he should have a good idea even a couple of days before the league year begins, as prospective free agents officially can talk to teams ahead of the day.

We already addressed the idea of Okung possibly returning on a one-year deal if his market is not what he expects due to his shoulder injury (he won’t be ready for workouts until June).

“It’s very possible that I could stay here,” he said. “But I know my value, and I’m not going to settle for anything less than that. If it works out, great. And if it doesn’t, that’s great as well.”

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