Pete Carroll takes his anger at the wrong place following the most recent Seahawks defeat

admin | December 1, 2023 | Other Clubs | No Comments

Pete Carroll, the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, was visibly irritated after his team lost for the third time in a row in a primetime thriller against the Dallas Cowboys.

He will find many supporters of his position on the officiating.

Dallas rallied to defeat Seattle 41-35, but the Seahawks (10) and Cowboys (9) combined for 19 penalties totaling 257 yards. Six times the Seahawks were flagged for illegal contact, defensive holding, and pass interference.

“It’s unfortunate that this game seems to have involved a whole other factor,” Carroll stated at the opening of his press conference following the game. “I’m not sure, you guys witnessed it to a much higher degree than I did, but this game had way too many penalties on both sides. We must stop playing that style of football.”

Costly coverage fouls

Carroll was especially aggravated by the coverage penalties, four of which occurred during Dallas’ lone touchdown drive in the third quarter. Carroll feels that referees should have more latitude in calling that aspect of the game. In August, the NFL requested that officials emphasize illegal contact fouls.

“They know the game, they know how to make these calls, but they can’t call everything that when there’s a little this and a little that, and particularly when it doesn’t affect the play,” Carroll stated.

“I’ll definitely dedicate some time to this during the offseason. Furthermore, I’m not claiming to know every solution. It’s not at all what I’m saying. I’m just saying that I believe there should be some adjustments made to the game because those situations are stressed too much.”

Carroll will have a lot of fans, but that doesn’t mean that the main problem keeping the Seahawks from competing with the best in the NFC is Carroll’s annoyance with the officiating.

A familiar failing

In other words, Carroll is a defensive coach whose team constantly struggles to leave the field.

Dallas had the ball for more than 36 minutes, dominating the time of possession. Seattle only had 25 first downs while the Cowboys recorded 33. Both teams failed to punt.

Eight of Dallas’ nine drives that resulted in a field goal or touchdown during the first half or the game did not end in a kneel down. The Cowboys only gave up the ball once, on their second drive of the third quarter, when they turned it over on downs.

In contrast to the 49ers’ crushing defeat last week, Seattle managed to pressure Dak Prescott four times, but the Seahawks were unable to stop Prescott from exploiting the secondary, which included CeeDee Lamb’s consecutive 100-yard performance, tight end Jake Ferguson, and second wide receiver Brandin Cooks.

The defensive backfield for Seattle is stacked with talented players, and Devon Witherspoon is making a strong case to win defensive rookie of the year after Riq Woolen, despite having a fantastic season, was not selected.

However, the Seahawks’ defensive players’ individual attributes do not translate into success as a unit. Five of the previous six games saw Seattle give up at least 20 points; the loss to Dallas was the third in which the Seahawks gave up 30 or more points.

As demonstrated against the Cowboys, the Seattle offense can score freely and keep the Seahawks in close games against top-tier opponents when Geno Smith is well and reasonably protected.

However, winning these kinds of games mostly comes from a cohesive team effort where the defense turns in crucial plays.

The Seahawks, who once appeared to be a lock for the postseason, will have to watch the postseason from home unless Carroll can spur a turnaround as a difficult stretch continues with a 49ers rematch and a primetime game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Those plays are conspicuously absent from Seattle.