Dan Quinn is a brilliant coordinator and will be a brilliant head coach. He is a genius at analyzing offenses and formulating defensive schemes. The interception by Richard Sherman towards the end of the Houston game last season was completely devised by Quinn. He saw that the quick, short pass was the go-to play for the Oilers in key situations and the Hawks were ready for it. Sherman actually hid behind the receiver so Schaub couldn't see him and stepped in front of the receiver as the ball was thrown, for a pick-six, just as the Seahawk defensive had practiced it leading up to the game. The Houston fans blamed Matt Schaub, but that play was all Dan Quinn beating the Houston coaches.
The extra year will help Quinn because he knows he will surely get an offer and he gets to thoroughly plan what he is going to do as a head coach and will probably have the luxury of choosing among several offers (I am predicting Oakland, or it could be the Giants if Coughlin retires). He gets another year to observe Pete Carroll and his coaching methods and we can be sure that he is taking thorough notes. One unknown about Quinn, a possible hole in his coaching toolset, is his ability to develop young players. He is a brainiac in the film room and with X's and O's, but can he teach and motivate young players? Because of the salary cap and the certainty of good teams losing players to free agency, developing players is a necessity for coaching success in the NFL. He hasn't demonstrated that ability yet, but there is no one better to learn from than Pete Carroll.
I am anxious to see how Dan Quinn does with the huge crop of young players on the defensive line this year. He needs to develop at least two or three *good * (not just adequate) players during the preseason out of a young group that includes Jordan Hill, Greg Scruggs, Benson Mayowa, Cassius Marsh, Jackson Jeffcoat, Michael Brooks, O'Brien Schofield, Bruce Irvin, D'Anthony Smith, Jimmy Staten, and Andru Pulu. If he can't do that, then his ability to teach and develop is in question.
One odd - and ignorant - statement in the article was the claim that Rocky Seto would take over as defensive coordinator for the Seahawks. That sounds like something the stupid segment of Husky fans would say. Pete Carroll did *not* bring Seto with him when he first came to the Seahawks and did not pick him up when Lane Kiffen did not hire Seto at USC. When Seto was finally hired by Carroll, it was to be an assistant to Kris Richard. Richard still outranks Seto and is much more important as far as his contributuons. If the Seahawks don't promote Richard to defensive coordinator, then he will be Dan Quinn's coordinator wherever he goes. (And Ken Norton might be Quinn's assistant head coach.)
.
