'This is where hope goes to die'
Seems that people still don't understand what the Seattle Seahawks are doing at quarterback so being the generous soul that I am, I've decided to share a little insight. Enjoy!
Apparently, it was “Dump on Pete Week” in Seattle regarding the Seahawks quarterback situation. I find the timing odd. After all, it’s been pretty clear for several months that Seattle was going to choose between Geno Smith and Drew Lock as the starter so I’m not sure why anyone would choose now to become aghast.
Perhaps it was Carroll’s comment about, “We have two No. 1s.”
I thought everyone understood that when trying to Parse Pete you have to start with the understanding that everything he says will be the best-case scenario. If you go in expecting him to provide reasoned and balanced assessments, you’ll come away thinking he’s delusional. He’s not delusional. Everything he says puts is the most optimistic version of whatever he’s talking about. This is true for injuries. It’s true for an individual player’s role or his trajectory. It’s true for the team in general.
When Carroll answers questions from reporters, he is telling you what he HOPES will happen. Not what is happening. Not what he thinks will happen. He’s telling you what he HOPES will happen. He hopes that the competition between Smith and Lock will produce Seattle with a pair of starting caliber players. I don’t think it will. I’m not sure many people think it will, but there’s nothing wrong with hoping for that, and yet here we are two weeks from the start of the regular season and some people are convinced that the fact these two are vying to be Seattle’s starter constitutes the collapse of civilized football as we know it in Seattle.
Well, I don’t think what the Seahawks are doing is stupid, and that’ s not because I believe that either Lock or Smith will end up being the long-term quarterback in Seattle. I don’t think that. But I am interested to see what they can do this season, and I believe the Seahawks are following a process that gives them a much better chance at long-term success than the eggs-in-one-basket approach that is much more common in the league. After all, Seattle’s process worked before.
But I’m skipping ahead. Let’s focus on what Schein had to say so I can point out the flaws in his understanding.