DANNY AND GALLANT

Carroll: What stands out in Shane Waldron’s new Seahawks offense

Jun 17, 2021, 11:40 AM

Seahawks Pete Carroll Russell Wilson...

Pete Carroll says a faster tempo on offense will help protect Russell Wilson. (Getty)

(Getty)

The Seahawks wrap up minicamp at their headquarters in Renton on Thursday, which means they’ve now had a good opportunity to see new offensive coordinator Shane Waldron’s offense in action on the practice field.

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Head coach Pete Carroll joined 710 ESPN Seattle’s Danny and Gallant prior to practice Thursday morning, and you can consider it a good sign that when asked about how things have been going, he immediately started talking about the offense and how well Waldron and quarterback Russell Wilson are working together.

“We’ve had just a lot of really crisp work, a really impressive beginning for Shane with his guys on the offensive side,” Carroll told Danny O’Neil and guest host Mike Salk. “Russ and Shane have really been on it. They have to lead the charge and they’ve been very connected, so it’s been a really tight execution for those guys.”

Waldron is entering his first year as an offensive coordinator in the NFL after spending the previous four seasons on Sean McVay’s Los Angeles Rams coaching staff, first as tight ends coach in 2017 and then passing game coordinator from 2018-20. He’s said to be bringing a lot of the same concepts the Rams have been using, which all stem from philosophies developed in the Mike Shanahan coaching tree that has become somewhat of the rage in the NFL in recent years, including with McVay and 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan.

So what’s going to stand out about this new offense to fans who have been watching the Seahawks closely throughout Carroll’s tenure in Seattle?

“I think what you may see is just the tempo of it, the way we work, because we’re still a zone (running) team,” Carroll said, explaining that there’s still a bit of what he’s familiar with in the offense. “… I just think that the details that (Waldron) brings and the continuity of the entire system is really sharp. The fact that Russell is in on it and (backup QB) Geno (Smith), they can execute it and call the stuff at the line of scrimmage and all the things that we have to do. I just think you’ll see us play faster.”

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That last part is especially important because a lot of the drama between Wilson and the Seahawks that dominated headlines earlier this offseason came from Wilson explaining that he feels like he has not received enough protection from getting hit in his nine seasons so far in the NFL. Carroll said the faster tempo should help fix that issue.

“I’m hoping that we’ll really protect the quarterback better. That’s one of the things we’re trying to do with our rhythm of things. When we’re at our best, Russ is really quick with the football, so that’s been a big focus for us,” Carroll said.

You can hear the full interview with Carroll in the last 10 minutes of the podcast at this link or in the player below.

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Carroll: What stands out in Shane Waldron’s new Seahawks offense