Pete Carroll, like most coaches, wants his offense to minimize turnovers. Carroll, given his old-school emphasis on defense and running game, is more focused than many on protecting the ball.
Lately, the Seahawks have not been doing so.
“We have to fix that,” quarterback Geno Smith told reporters on Thursday. “I have to fix it. It starts with me, I’ve got to fix it, can’t have any more turnovers, can’t have any more of those plays that put our defense in tough positions. I look forward to it. I think that’s something that I know that I can fix, and I can correct. These are the only opportunities for me to continue to grow and to learn. I look forward to the next opportunity to really show that I can get those things corrected.”
The solution could come from calming down.
“I think [I’m] just trying too hard, pressing, trying to make plays sometimes when they aren’t there,” Smith said. “I’ve always been competitive, I always think that every play should work, and I hate giving up on a play, but sometimes you have to. Throwing the ball away is not a big thing. Punting the ball is not a bad thing. Just being smarter in that regard, but overall, correcting it however it needs to be done.”
Smith said that Carroll emphasizes minimizing turnovers on a weekly basis.
“That’s what we talk about every single week, all about the ball-centric theme of the program,” Smith said. “That’s a big factor in wins and losses and we emphasize all week and every week. This week in particular and moving forward through the rest of the season, it’s going to be huge for us. On the offensive side of the ball want to get those things corrected. Our defense is doing a great job creating turnovers, now if we could play complementary football and not give the ball away, I think things will be a lot better.”
Smith’s comments come a day after Carroll was careful not to call out his quarterback or anyone else for the issue.
“There’s been factors,” Carroll told reporters on Wednesday. “I’m not one to try to nail anybody on stuff. There’s been factors that contribute, and it just depends on the situations. We misread something and didn’t really see it clearly because we got fooled by the disguise and we didn’t respond well when we communicated. We had a lousy play that turned into a turnover for them. A number of things had to contribute to make that happen, but that’s just how it is. We just have to keep track of it. There are other circumstances that weigh into these things, it’s not just one guy.”
In eight games, Smith has seven interceptions and three fumbles. Obviously, it needs to improve. At some point, it will be fair to wonder whether Carroll will consider giving Drew Lock a chance to do a better job of protecting the ball.
