Let's say the Seahawks are actually really bad in 2018...

[TwistedHusky]

We aren't going to be really bad.

But anyone thinking we have a shot at 11 wins is insane or delusional.

More concerning will be whether we make the playoffs or not, but I think we can expect a pretty good team that isn't good enough to do much past the regular season. I expect a wildcard but I don't think there is much chance past that.


IF we somehow are really bad, Carroll would get another shot because he would be putting in a new offense and defense. Most people give you time for that to gel. But the only way I see us being 4 wins bad is an injury to a key player, which would be hard to pin on a successful HC.

 

[adeltaY]

Weird thought, but an awful season resulting in a top 5 pick might give Carroll more reason to stay/leeway because he would have some really good draft capital for the first time since 2010. We did give Houston our second though...

 

[Seahawks Guy]

The Seahawks are going to be really bad in 2018....the good kind of bad, though...like we're back in the 90s and bad means good/cool.

 

[AgentDib]

I think Paul Allen is reasonable when it comes to bad luck. He isn't going to overreact if we lose a bunch of games because Russ goes down in game 2, or if we lose a bunch of close games on bad bounces or bad calls. If we do miss the playoffs then the record itself is less important than how competitive the team looks overall.

Memories around here are super short but Pete's record here has been outstanding. He's now coming off six consecutive winning seasons including our only championship and you have to be nuts to think he is on any kind of short leash.

 

[NFSeahawks]

Pete only has a few years anyway, if he doesn't improve the team to consistent playoff contenders he's gone.

 

[Sun Tzu]

With some pundits already predicting the team to bottom out this year (A 4-12 prediction from some USA Today writer, 5-11 prediction from Prisco*, etc.) .. let's just say for S&Gigs that the year goes sideways at some point. Maybe Russ gets hurt, the offense never gets going, the young defense plays like a young defense, etc. and they do finish in a position that places them closer to the Top 5 of the draft than the playoffs.

What then?

Do you think Pete Carroll retires like Holmgren did after the wheels came off at the end? Does Pete get fired? Does Pete come back in 2019 and continues the second re-build?

It's easy to be overly myopic and think this team could surprise and win 9+ games and sneak into the playoffs.. but what if this all goes badly? What would you guess happens?

* - denotes Pete Prisco is a moron and should not be labeled a pundit

If the year goes sideways and we go 4-12 or even 0-16 for that matter:
Yes, Pete does come back - he won't want to go out like that and I think he's excited about rebuilding/reloading.
No, Pete does not get fired - Paul Allen is smarter than the average .net poster, Paul does not make knee jerk reactionary decisions, and Paul recognizes that this is a mini rebuild year and Pete is a great coach to get a rebuild with young players off and running.
To me, the primary goals for this season are:
1. Reemphasize the culture that got us to the top. Some of the old guard had become disruptive to the culture, most of those guys are gone. Bobby, KJ, Doug, and RW will help Pete get the message across to the new blood.
2. Develop the young talent on the team through competition and game experience. Many position battles are wide open this year which should increase the level of competition in practice and provide opportunities for some new faces to emerge. The new coaches all have a reputation as teachers and motivators. Was this by design? I think so.
3. Evaluate the player personnel. With so much turnover and untested youth, it is difficult to evaluate the team at present. By the end of the season PC/JS will have a much better picture of what we have and what direction we need to go in FA and the draft.
4. Improve the cap health. This year and last our cap situation is/was not ideal, it should be significantly improved next year.

 

[West TX Hawk]

I think we're seeing 2 more seasons with Pete whatever happens this year. I don't see an extension happening. He fulfills the contract and that's it, no more no less.

6-10 or 7-9 is IMO what we see this year, with Pete back in '19 with marginal improvement but both sides mutually agree to go their separate ways after. Significant new blood comes in '20.

 

[brimsalabim]

Considering that we are rebuilding wouldn’t it be better long term for us to lose big than to squeak by and barely miss the playoffs again? We still lack impact players. Allen has given Pete a long rope to date. I believe Pete would survive a disaster year if it appears to be part of the rebuilding process. On the other hand there is a chance that Pete and John are correct that our struggles were more staff related than player personnel and we could have another memorable season.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

Considering that we are rebuilding wouldn’t it be better long term for us to lose big than to squeak by and barely miss the playoffs again? We still lack impact players. Allen has given Pete a long rope to date. I believe Pete would survive a disaster year if it appears to be part of the rebuilding process. On the other hand there is a chance that Pete and John are correct that our struggles were more staff related than player personnel and we could have another memorable season.

In a vacuum it's better to REALLY stink and get higher draft picks. But that's not taking into consideration the fact that if that happens Pete and John are probably getting fired or not getting another contract from Paul Allen..............which would implode the team internally for who knows how long until another HC and GM can replicate this kind of sustained success.

 

[Hasselbeck]

Nope, 3-3 in the west. I honestly don't think Pete would just up and leave if they had a bad season, for their standards at least. He likes to rebuild things up. He did it at USC and did it here. He can again.

Pete was 50 when he took the USC job. If this season goes south, entering 2019 he would be 67 years old.

Not saying Pete would be 100% opposed against another rebuild, but nearly 20 years have passed between when he started at USC to today. I think that's pretty important when considering his future - success or otherwise.

 

[Popeyejones]

More likely I think would be PC retiring if the Hawks won another Super Bowl.

I think it would take a few years of pretty bad play for him to ride off into the sunset.

 

[CamanoIslandJQ]

Predicting season records, before training camp even starts is pure guesswork that is often influenced by the local and National media crap that typically goes on in the off season. Everyone knows the players that are gone but nobody knows how all the new acquisitions will fit in as replacements, time will tell us that. Once more is known, season predictions based more on facts will likely change, one way or another. In any event, I see the Seahawks as a team that should be above 8-8 on the season, how much above that 8-8 will be determined by the new players and the improvement of their existing players + by the law of averages, injuries should be down in the coming season. The sky isn't suddenly falling as many seem to think, especially the National media-idiots.

Personally, I prefer to make more of an educated guess after I have had the opportunity to see the newly acquired players and how they all fit in to the team - during the preseason and after the 4 "practice" games. When the starters are all settled, we'll have a lot more information to use in things like projecting season won loss records and the silly stuff about "what if" and the head coach being on a hot seat. IMO-many (most) of the 2018 drafted players have huge upsides and given the opportunity, many will very likely shine, making thoughts of 4-12 seasons even more laughable and ridiculous in the future months.

:smilingalien:

 

[SoulfishHawk]

Ron Fairly is the best predictor of wins or losses. Like he said, you score more than the other team.......you're gonna' win the game.

 

[Seymour]

Ron Fairly is the best predictor of wins or losses. Like he said, you score more than the other team.......you're gonna' win the game.

Not always! What about when the refs help the other team and give fat bastard Ben a TD that isn't one??

[youtube]N93VaUytd4w[/youtube]

Now look what you did!!! :141847_bnono: :twisted:

 

[SchadenfreudeHawk]

The national media is absolutely correct about how bad we are going to be next year and I have to imagine that the front office (all the way up to ownership) knows this. I think that they will give Pete a second year and if the team isn't around 8-8 in 2019 than Pete gets the boot. Honestly, if the franchise is expecting us to be good next year than we are in really bad shape. If Paul Allen doesn't have people telling him how bad this team is (and to expect a really rough season) than we are in for a couple really bad years as the team scrambles to make sense of what they missed. If the entire team has homer goggles on and doesn't realize that we are in need of a total rebuild than this franchise is in really, really bad shape.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

Nope, it's a prediction, doesn't make it fact.

 

[Fade]

1) The CBA is getting ready to expire in the not too distant future, with a strong potential for a Lockout.

2) Pete only has 1 more year left on his deal after this season. (Upcoming "Lame Duck" year.)

3) Pete is the oldest coach in the NFL.


When you understand these 3 points it is pretty obvious to see. Things are setting up for Pete to be fired if the Seahawks have a terrible season.


...but there is a flip-side to that coin...

If the team has a really good season Pete will be extended.


Mediocre Season territory gets more interesting.

The hyper focus of my eye will be on the running game as the gauge on whether or not I want Pete to continue to be the coach. He has put so much emphasis on it the last 3 off-seasons, and they have gotten worse at it every year, that is a bad sign to me, and it is unacceptable if it continues. Other parts of the football team have suffered and regressed because of this.

So if they are 8-8, and still cannot run the ball. It is time to move on imo. You can't fail at trying to fix something for 3-straight off-seasons, and find a way to get worse at it every year. That is Cabevell tier failure. That will be hard to pull off this year of course, but they must show significant improvement. If they actually are worse running the ball this year hand Pete his pink slip now.

If they are 8-8, scrappy, physical, markedly improve running the ball, and have a 2011 feel about them, extend Pete.


I'm on the fence right now about Pete's future with the team. I have to see what it looks like with all the new pieces first.

 

[Thunderhawk]

On paper? 6-10 worst case. 9-7 best case but...

Gut feeling: I think we're about to witness Pete's best ever coaching job, even better than last year. The man's innate competitiveness has to be amped up to 11 after this offseason of disrespect. I think he gets the young secondary to gel and ball hawk, running game goes full smash mouth, and we win some nail biters with pure grit. Carroll teams feed off disrespect. If they win a few and get momentum look out.

Should they make the playoffs Pete will get his long deserved coach of the year.

 

[chris98251]

One Paul is not a knee jerk owner and has a sound front office that doesn't over react, he understands that a coaching churn over and a player turnover and or rebuild resets the bar and it will take a bit of time before things sync up again. The first time they had I think a 5 year plan and pretty much hit it dead nuts on, I would expect a 3 year plan now.

 

[KiwiHawk]

1 Super Bowl Championship, 2 NFC Championships, 4 NFC West Championships, 6 playoff births in 8 seasons when taking over a legit 4-12 team and overseeing a complete rebuild, buys you a little bit of leeway.

The team would have to be historically bad without significant injuries for Carroll to be let go.