Now that everybody's done stroking Carrolls ego, lets look at it all. Yeah Pete is the best thing to happen to the franchise because he won a Super Bowl. If he hadent and Holmgren or Knox won one, they would be the best thing for the franchise. Pete bringing in head cases bites him as much as it lauds him. A lot of players leave Seattle and play better elsewhere. Take Bobby for example, he played better in LA than he did for a few years in Seattle. What about Dunlap having to tell the staff they were playing him wrong and then he came alive once they adjusted that. Pete's a great motivator, but he's pretty pedestrian in the X and O's aspect and I believe thats the biggest need. And besides last season, when has Pete Carroll teams won more than they are expected to win? They pretty much lay eggs in the post season so I dont get that comment at all.
The bottom line is most players benefit from a great coach more so than a buddy or a friend.
Knox was a great head coach but even if he'd won a SB, the Hawks success during his tenure doesn't come close to what PC has accomplished. - and I love me some Ground Chuck.
Can say the same for Holmgren. He was an offensive mastermind but our defenses were never respected and he was unceremoniously stripped of his GM duties when it was obvious he was no more than a great coach and OC. And that's not diminishing what he did for the team and the city. He brought us legitimacy before even coaching a game by virtue of his reputation alone.
They were both great, but in their greatness never accomplished what PC has in essentially assembling a roster, culture, philosophy, and winning tradition that made the Hawks the most successful franchise in the league over a decade.
Look around the league. The always compete mantra that every team now pushes... started in Seattle under PC. High tempo, high competition, music blasting practices? PC. His style and philosophy forced league wide rules changes. And to virtually a man, everyone who has come and gone through the doors of team HQs comments that the culture and overall quality of the organization in Seattle is 2nd to none. You could also slmost say the same for our win%, were it not for the last 2 seasons.
Did we win all the titles the Pat's did? No, but neither did anyone else who wasn't gifted with the GOAT and a cakewalk of a conference schedule every year.
And he accomplished what he has in Seattle while being viewed as a cast aside coach from the day he got here. He was called a cheater, a has been, out of touch, behind the times, and better suited for the college game. And to this day, that unfair characterization has without a doubt kept him from receiving full credit for just how great a coach he is. But his players see it, the FO sees it. Even if some fans don't.