SEATTLE — Trying to get Pete Carroll to bad-mouth a former player of his is like trying to get an Auburn fan to yell "Roll Tide!" The Seahawks coach doesn't do it — even when it would be justified.
Richard Sherman blamed Carroll for costing them the Super Bowl after a sideline explosion in 2016, but Pete never once chided him in public. Earl Thomas flipped him the bird in his final game as a Seahawk, yet Carroll did nothing but laud the safety in ensuing news conferences.
Examples such as these abound, which is why one particular response stood out before the Seahawks' season opener vs. Denver last September.
Any thoughts on fans potentially booing Russell Wilson?
"You are either competing, or you are not. ... It's game time, and we are going for it, so however [fans] take it, I will follow their lead on that," Carroll said. "I'll leave it up to the 12s. I think they will know exactly what to do."
That wasn't love for a quarterback that shined in Seattle for 10 years and led the Seahawks to their only Super Bowl title. That was a signal to the fans to let the boo birds rain.
Could Pete's answer simply have been a reflection of his competitive nature? Sure. Or maybe he was still fuming that Wilson ... tried to get him fired.
That's what a Friday report from the Athletic alleged anyway. It said that Wilson asked ownership to can Carroll and Seahawks general manager John Schneider because he "was convinced that Carroll and Schneider were inhibiting his quest to win additional Super Bowls and individual awards."
The sources were anonymous, and Wilson denied doing so, but I doubt many people will believe him. Fair or not, Russell's reputation in Seattle will likely never recover from this. Most folks will always see him as a fraud.
One of the reasons fans are so warm to a player such as Marshawn Lynch is because they feel they are seeing authenticity epitomized. It's not as if Beast Mode didn't create unnecessary tension during his time in Seattle, as he'd regularly question authority and occasionally skip team bus rides. But people knew who he was.
Same is true of Sherman, who has irked thousands of 12s over the years, yet still received a booming ovation at a Seattle charity basketball event last year. He's real. People know that. Wilson comes off as the furthest thing from that.
Russell would give all the prepackaged answers about how dedicated he was to the Seahawks, then drum up a list of four teams he'd be willing to be traded to. He'd try to come off like just one of the guys, but then have his own staff and office in the Broncos' building. And if this report is true — to go after a coach and GM's livelihood? Such a departure from the image Wilson cultivated.
It's not as if some of these demands/requests are unprecedented by revered athletes. Kobe Bryant asked to be traded multiple times when the Lakers were struggling, and Magic Johnson essentially got Paul Westhead fired as coach. Those two might be the most celebrated sportsmen in Los Angeles history.
But neither of those two ever acted like the next Mr. Rogers in front of cameras.
Wilson's image has taken a piñata-like beating over the past year. He endured ridicule for performing high-knees and other exercises while his Broncos teammates slept on the plane. There was the USA Today report that just a quarter of the money raised by Wilson's Why Not You Foundation went to charity. Now there's this Athletic report — which comes a month and a half after Wilson producing the worst season of his career.
Who could have seen all of this coming?
I've said it before and I'll say it again — Wilson made the world a better place. He would visit Seattle Children's Hospital weekly, and even if some of his foundation's practices are in question, he still raised and donated a substantial amount of cash toward charity. He also helped give this city a sports jolt it hadn't felt in decades by quarterbacking the 2013 Hawks all the way to the title.
But after Friday's report, which most will likely believe, I'm not sure the town will ever embrace him like they once did. Wanting out is one thing. Trying to get a coach and GM fired is another.
It's truly wild how the past year has unfolded. Wilson infamously said that he was tired of getting hit while in Seattle. Truth is, the heaviest hits have all come since he left.
