Seahawks: 5 worst mistakes under coach Pete Carroll

The Seahawks have been really good under Pete Carroll since he arrived in 2010. But that time has not been without several mistakes. In fact, some mistakes might have kept Seattle from being even better in future years.

Let me be clear, though, I am not a Pete hater. I am glad he is the coach and Vice President of Football Operations for the Seahawks, Seattle is better over the last decade because he is involved in the organization.

But his mistakes still need to be addressed. And what follows are his five worst. (And no, none of these involve his questionable time management or questionable challenge calls in hopes of getting some penalties reversed.)

Pete Carroll’s worst mistakes in his Seahawks coaching career

Number five: Drafting Rashaad Penny in the first round

Rashaad Penny might still have tons of talent but he was a reach to take in the first round in 2018. Yes, he was explosive in college and projected to be a good pro but no other team was going to take him in the first round and Seattle traded down to get him. Penny would have been around in the second round and Seattle could have traded back again and picked up picks instead of Penny.

Of course, Pete Carroll couples with John Schneider to create the Seahawks roster but while Schneider has possibly more control over free-agent signings, Carroll has at least as much control over draft choices.

Penny so far has been a bust. He does have a 5.1 yards per carry average over his first three years, but he has only played in 27 games (on average, 9 a season) and run the ball 161 times. For comparison, Chris Carson was underutilized last year and in 12 games still had 141 carries.

Maybe Penny will do a 180 and be good this year and healthy. But the Seahawks have already declined his fifth-year option for 2022 so he will likely be playing elsewhere next year.