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News and Analysis:
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Its been made official that the new Seattle Seahawks head coach will be Pete Carroll. Carroll's arrival comes abruptly,
as the Seahawks announced the surprising release of first year head coach Jim Mora Jr. Mora was brought to Seattle
to learn under Mike Holmgren and eventually take over as head coach upon Holmgren's departure. This
arrangement only lasted one season as Mora led the Seattle to a 5-11 season and was fired shortly after the season
finale.
The hire of Carroll is a surprising move considering the tremendous success
Carroll has had at the collegiate level, in particular at USC. Carroll's nine (9)
seasons at USC (2001-2009) marked one of the most successful eras in
college football. Carroll amassed a 97-19 overall record, two national
championships, and seven PAC-10 conference titles. Carroll is also responsible
for developing numerous NFL prospects with 14 USC players being drafted in
the first round since 2001 and six being drafted in the top 10.
Now that the NFL and Seattle have made the move official (to the tune of 5
years 35 million), drafthuddle.com takes a look at some of the 2010 draft
implications. Pete Carroll is a defensive guru. Carroll started his career as a
defensive backs coach in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills in 1984. His success
propelled him to land defensive coordinator positions with the NY Jets and San
Fransisco 49ers. Carroll eventually landed a head coaching position with the Jets in 1994 and again with New
England in 1997. As the head coach of the Patriots, Carroll drafted the following players in the first three rounds:
From Carroll's draft history we can see a trend of drafting
running backs and defensive backs. Since 1997, Carroll
has drafted five (5) running backs and five (5) defensive
backs in the first three rounds. In total, Carroll drafted
eleven (11) defensive players in three years. Given
Carroll's defensive background, in particular the secondary
it is not surprising that Carroll would target DB's or
defensive players in general. However, the tendency to
draft running backs is somewhat surprising, especially given
the frequency in three years. Will this trend carry over to
Seattle?
When looking at the needs for the Seattle Seahawks, the
running back position is of need. The current starters for
the team are Julius Jones, Justin Forsett, and Louis Rankin.
This is not exactly a depth chart with "star" quality. In fact,
Seattle has not had a running back rush for over 900 yards
in four consecutive seasons (06-09). If Carroll follows his
NFL drafting strategy, you can be assured that a running
back will be drafted, and possibly early.
Lucky for Seattle, the 2010 NFL draft will boasts some
strong candidates for a starting running back position.
Clemson star, C.J. Spiller is projected to be drafted in the top
20. In addition to Spiller, Jahvid Best, Jonathan Dwyer, Ryan Matthews, and Toby Gerhart are all capable of carrying
the load.
How else will Carroll's presence possibly affect the draft? One of the more interesting theories is that Carroll will draft
many of his former USC athletes. The possibility of players such as: Taylor Mays (S); Damian Williams (WR); Joe
McKnight (RB); Everson Griffen (DE); or Charles Brown (OT), being drafted by Carroll/Seattle have increased.
Depending on how the draft plays out, the aforementioned players not being drafted by Carroll (if available for the
right price) could very well be a damning statement to their overall potential. Why wouldn't a coach draft his former
college star player(s)?
Nonetheless, Carroll's decision to take the head coaching vacancy at Seattle has implications to how the 2010 draft
will play out. Looking at Carroll's drafting trends, it is evident that the former USC head coach places high priority on
the running back position and defense in general. Look for these drafting trends to continue when Seattle is on the
clock come April.
- Draft Huddle
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