Parsing Pete Carroll on why Jared Allen has yet to sign
Mar 24, 2014, 1:43 PM | Updated: Mar 25, 2014, 1:04 pm
By Danny O’Neil
Wondering what’s taking Jared Allen so long to decide on accepting the Seahawks offer?
 Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said he didn’t have much to comment on Monday regarding free agent DL Jared Allen, who still has an offer on the table from Seattle. (AP) |
Because coach Pete Carroll isn’t. At least not judging by Monday’s interview with Pat Kirwan on Sirius XM NFL Radio.
“We don’t have any date,” Carroll said. “This is something we’ve talked about, and it’s a big business decision for him and really not much to comment about it right now.”
Well, so let’s read between the lines then because it’s not just what Carroll said, but what it means that is worth breaking down after Monday’s interview from the owners’ meeting down in Florida.
What Carroll said: “We’re very restricted in what we can do, you know? We have a lot of work to get done here on our roster and a lot of guys we’ve got to work with and we’re excited about extending and stuff like this.”
What Carroll meant: We’re not in position to offer the dollar amount that Allen wanted. We just can’t. Not with cornerback Richard Sherman now eligible for an extension, safety Earl Thomas with one season left on his deal and a new deal for Russell Wilson looming on the horizon.
What Carroll said: “So we have a lot of concerns, and not everything is real easy. Can’t move as swiftly as anyone would like.”
What Carroll meant: It isn’t a matter of the Seahawks closing the deal nearly so much as Allen deciding whether he wants this opportunity. Because we’re not in a position to keep sweetening the pot.
Allen has had 10 or more sacks in each of the past seven seasons, the last six of which he played in Minnesota. He visited Seattle twice in the span of a week, but as of Monday there was no word on any decision he had made as a free agent.
