Seahawks coach Pete Carroll held his press conference at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, and while there wasn’t a lot news out of his main session with the media, he had some nuggets when he met with a few reporters after leaving the podium.
Via the team’s twitter account, Carroll confirmed to reporters that neither safety Kam Chancellor, who suffered an MCL injury before the Super Bowl, nor Richard Sherman, who hurt his elbow in the NFC championship game, will need surgery on their injuries.
Carroll also said that tight end Zach Miller is making good progress in his recovery from ankle surgery and is on track to be back for the start of the season.
As for what Carroll said in his press conference, here are a few highlights:
—On promoting Kris Richard to defensive coordinator and Rocky Seto to assistant head coach: “We’ve had a number of years together—Kris Richard, Rocky Seto and I—along with Kenny (Norton Jr.) before he took off—we’ve been together for a long time, been through a lot. Those guys have grown up in our system, so the opportunity to make Kris Richard the def coordinator and Rocky the assistant head coach on defense is really a natural progression for those guys. They’ve been so instrumental for such a long time.”
—Carroll said the Seahawks are looking to add a couple more coaches to the defensive staff, though what positions those end up being could depend on who they hire: “We’re still working on a couple of spots on defense here at the combine. We want to really be open to a lot of people and give guys a chance.”
—On Marshawn Lynch, Carroll reiterated what GM John Schneider said a day earlier—that the Seahawks are working to get a new deal done with their star running back: “I haven’t talked to Marshawn, but we have been in earnest for a great deal of time now negotiating to get Marshawn back with us in every way that we can. It’s been an ongoing long process, we’ve had big offers out there and continue to work with that, and we’re exited about the future. He’s been an integral part of our program for five years and we love the contribution that he’s brought. We’re excited to move ahead, we’d like to move with that swiftly. It’s such a big deal, as it has always been, to get our lead players intact, so we’re working at that now.”
—Carroll had some interesting comments on finding pass rushers in the draft, noting that “It is the most difficult position to fill. It’s the most unique qualified spot to be a physical-natured kid that can also bring the heat and the rush and the finesse and the power and the speed and all that stuff, it’s very, very rare. There are very few guys who come along that really special. The young guys, it takes them time.”
“Bruce Irvin is a great example for us. Bruce is really coming into his own as a rusher. It’s taken him a few years, and he’s adapting beautifully. We saw him from the second half of this year on—it’s just a process. He was as well equipped athletically as anybody you could hope for. We really have great expectations for Bruce as we move ahead.
—Asked if he’ll miss Jim Harbaugh now that the former 49ers coach is at Michigan, Carroll said he would, noting, “he brought he best out of us.” Carroll also said Harbaugh is “going to kick butt at Michigan.”
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