Carroll In Shock

Given the recent loss to the Seahawks, it’s no real surprise that changes would be in the fold but what happens with team personnel is anyone’s surprise.

In most cases the ones that get affected with layoffs or firings are the ones that are what some call “scape-goats” in the industry and pro sports is no different.

In a move that few have foreseen when the season kicked off we are hearing that one of the NFL’s best offenses, the Seahawks have parted ways with offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer which was announced on Twitter: 

The release read as follows: “Brian Schottenheimer is a fantastic person and coach and we thank him for the last three years. Citing philosophical differences, we have parted ways.

He spent three seasons as the offensive coordinator and was hired  shortly after Darrell Bevell was fired after the 2017 season.

They (Seahawks) scored 459 points in regular season this season, which was the most in team history, becoming the fifth team since the 1970 NFL merger to start a season 3-0 and score 35-plus points in each game.

Sadly enough it was the offense that seemed to get points on the board managing to falter in the stretch run being held to 20 points or fewer in four of the final six games including Saturday’s 30-20 loss to the Rams in a wild-card playoff game.

Coach Pete Carroll “tap danced” when asked about changes on his coaching staff at the press conference Monday, saying “I’m counting on everybody coming back.”

He also referred to the question about possession of the ball at all times and mentioned the Seahawks must return to running the ball more in 2021.

The Rams’ loss included a fourth quarter fourth-down play when they were on their own 34 in which Carroll admitted that he essentially overruled the play call, which resulted in the team leaving the huddle far too late. 

Jordan Simmons (LG) was called for illegal motion noting that Seattle was losing 23-13 and forced a punt that saw the Rams use a fumbled punt by Seattle to score taking a 30-13 lead with time against them.

Carroll mentioned “We were talking it over and we discussed some plays and I kind of got in the middle of it and then, we just got late.” 

He continued “We didn’t function the way we needed to right there and so we had to punt the football.  Punting the football wasn’t a bad idea, either.  Just to get them on down, and take them to the next couple sequences.  But I would have really liked to have made that, and so that’s why we went ahead and tried to get the chance and then we just didn’t function cleanly like we needed to.

Carroll also acknowledged that after the team lost three of four at mid-season losing 10 turnovers in the three losses as he wanted the offense to become a bit more conversative and careful with the ball.”

The Seahawks did that down the stretch, committing one or fewer turnovers in a four-game winning streak that clinched the NFC West title at 12-4.

The Seahawks were held to 278 yards against the Rams, which is a season low, as Seattle couldn’t reverse a late-season offensive nosedive.

Carroll mentioned he wanted to run the ball more to try to get defenses out of playing so much soft, two-deep zone, which he felt teams had used to stop Seattle’s explosive plays.

Running more didn’t necessarily seem like it would go counter to Schottenheimer’s philosophy, When he was hired both Carroll and Schottenheimer pointed to Schottenheimer’s experience in run-heavy offenses as something that attracted them to each other.

Wilson threw for 28 TD passes in the first eight games of the season, which was on pace to break Manning’s record of 55 in 2013, having 12 in the final eight games.

In conversation with many Canadian fans the pass couple of days, they offer the solace “wait till next season.”

Win or lose – they’re fun to watch!!!

This story will be updated

Thanks to Bob Candotta with the Seattle Times for the info.