As Pete Carroll said, “Johnny” finally gets to have full control of the team, which makes this his first draft to showcase his true philosophy.
2024 has set itself up to be a far more interesting offseason than even 2022 after the Seattle Seahawks traded Russell Wilson.
For the first time in 15 years, the Seahawks are undergoing a search for a new Head Coach. But that’s not the only thing John Schneider revealed in his first press conference with the media.
He has full control over the NFL draft and personnel decisions, in a way that he did not previously have. In fact, he was asked to clarify if his understanding is that he has the final say over all personnel decisions.
“Yes,” was all that was required.
What all of that means, is this season (and the next really), will shed some light into who weighed more heavily into some of the more…courageous draft decisions over the past decade.
After absolutely destroying the league through stellar selection after stellar selection, Seattle gained virtually nothing from 2016-19. DK Metcalf and five seasons of Chris Carson are about the only exceptions.
2020 was better, ‘21 was horrible, and 2022 is when Jody Allen stepped in. As 2022 and ‘23 both look to be successful draft classes, it begs the question who was making some of the final and questionable decisions in the middle of the 2010s?
Remember the first “Sound of the #Seahawks” where they took us inside the War Room. Jody Allen was surprisingly there. Pete Carroll was talking to her while John Schneider sat across, probably minutes away from the draft beginning? Allen sat right next to them for the whole thing pic.twitter.com/mN66qXPaTC
— Under Zone X (Frisco)/Phoenix Check/Stick Slasher2 (@mattyfbrown) January 12, 2024
Personally, I think Pete Carroll weighed heavily on the draft, despite all the noise about it being a partnership between he and Schneider. I’m sure it was, but I’m equally sure that a RB in the second round of 2023 and ‘22 and the first round of 2018 were “Pete picks.”
It’s not just the size/speed obsessions, or the strange valuation of positions, but I genuinely felt that Schneider was vocal in a different way after these previous two drafts. It felt more like he was spearheading the conversations in the press conferences that weekend.
Additionally, the reports of Seattle’s interest in Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes have been infinitely more linked to Schneider than Carroll.
That being said, and even with the impending sale of the Seahawks at some point this decade, Schneider’s job is not in any real jeopardy. If he has a questionable draft, he’s not going to get fired. They made this decision to keep John and move on from Pete, and that’s not a one-year deal.
But man will it go a long way in answering some questions about what exactly happened during an eight-year drought after such successful draft classes.
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