Pete Carroll Preview: Metcalf update, Giants’ run game vs Seahawks

The Seahawks will look to extend their lead in the NFC West with a third consecutive win, but this week will be a tough task when they face off with the New York Giants.

Rost: 3 things to know about Seahawks’ matchup with surprising Giants

The Giants, like the Seahawks, are one of the biggest surprise teams in the NFL. While Seattle enters the contest at 4-3, New York is 6-1 with all its wins coming by one score.

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll discussed the matchup as well as a key injury during the weekly Pete Carroll Preview on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM Friday morning.

First off, DK Metcalf’s status.

Metcalf, a 2019 second-round pick who has blossomed into one of the best receivers in the NFL, is in danger of missing his first game as a pro after leaving last week’s win over the L.A. Chargers with a patellar tendon injury.

“He’s been moving around so far,” Carroll told Steve Raible. “He’s been jogging around. He has not taken any practice reps yet, so we’ll see what happens to him.”

When Metcalf went down, Marquise Goodwin, a veteran receiver who signed with the Seahawks this offseason, became a key part of the offense. He finished the day with four catches for 67 yards and two touchdowns against the Chargers.

“What a big boost that was and to have impacting plays,” Carroll said of Goodwin’s Week 7 performance. “He’s an exciting player. He’s so fast. He’s as fast as guys can get on the football field. And to see him get behind guys and and then make a spectacular catch … in the corner of the end zone there, it just keeps the threat on. When you lose DK then here comes a guy catching two touchdown passes and causing some problems for your opponents. So that was really helpful and we’ll look forward to him again on Sunday.”

Sticking with the offense, both the Seahawks and Giants have excelled at running the football this year, with Seattle ranking 10th in rushing yards per game and New York ranking second.

For the Giants, the focal point of their offense is running back Saquon Barkley, the No. 2 overall pick in 2018 who is thriving under new head coach Brian Daboll after some injury-plagued seasons. He’s second in the NFL in rushing yards and has scored four touchdowns.

“The hard part about playing Saquon is you don’t know when he’s gonna go. There’ll be plays where we’ll get him at the line of scrimmage and we’ll get him for a couple of yard gains and all that, and then it’s just one step away from him popping over somebody or spinning out of something and he’s (running down) the sidelines,” Carroll said. “He’s extremely fast. He’s very much like (Seahawks running back) Rashaad Penny for us where he’s so explosive once he takes off that rarely do guys catch him. So he’s got that strike ability that you’re just living with the whole time and he’s 233 pounds.”

But Barkley isn’t the only reason the Giants are second in the league in rushing as quarterback Daniel Jones has 343 rushing yards, which is 28th in the league and third among all quarterbacks.

“The running game is enhanced with the quarterback, of course,” Carroll said. ” … He’s been very active, and they design the running game around him, as well. He will scramble — he does that quickly. And he runs hard. He’s a tough runner and a big kid. His speed isn’t great on on paper, but it doesn’t look like that when you play him. He looks really fast, and he’s really elusive and aggressive with the ball.”

For the Seahawks, the run game has taken off in recent weeks, first with Penny and lately with rookie Kenneth Walker III. But the blocking has been key in the bigger runs Walker has broken off of late, and that certainly has not gone unnoticed to Carroll.

“The guys up front have done a really good job for the first almost half of the season now of getting acclimated to our style and what we’re trying to get done, and the runners are fitting together with them. That’s working fine,” Carroll said. “But without the help of the guys on the edge – we play multiple tight ends and use them a lot, and they’re intricately involved in the running game – it wouldn’t be the same. To have those kinds of long runs … it goes all the way to the wide receivers being part of it. Everybody’s got to be bought in and everybody’s got to be committed to it.”

Listen to the full Pete Carroll Preview at this link or in the player below.

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