Last week at the Scouting Combine, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll downplayed the possibility of the turnover that hit the coaching staff spreading to the roster.
“People see the major changes on the coaching staff and they extrapolate to mean there will be major changes on the roster. Should we expect major changes to what we saw at the end of last year?” Carroll was asked during an appearance on PFT Live.
“I don’t know why that would necessarily tie together,” Carroll said. “I don’t think that’s good logic.”
It may not be good logic, but it seems to be coming to fruition. Defensive end Michael Bennett is gone. Cornerback Richard Sherman is gone. Cornerback Jeremy Lane is gone. Safety Earl Thomas is reportedly available. And that’s before guys like tight end Jimmy Graham and defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson leave via free agency.
As to the changes to the coaching staff, Carroll agreed with the notion that the team’s first failure to make it to the playoffs since 2011 provided an occasion for making changes on the coaching staff that success potentially delayed. That same dynamic may have applied to the roster, too.
Moving forward, the Seahawks may be shifting the focus from their defense to their offense. More specifically, to Russell Wilson. With a franchise quarterback still in the front end of his prime, the Seahawks may be doing with him what other teams have done with the short-list best quarterbacks in the game -- be happy to have them, and build the team around them.