Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith still has fond feelings for the coach who made him the starter in Seattle and was fired this offseason.
Smith said as the Seahawks opened their offseason program that Pete Carroll’s firing hurt him, because Carroll meant so much to him personally.
“That day is a day I’ll probably remember forever, just because of how things happened for me here,” Smith said. “Coach Carroll, a big influence on my career, helped me out a bunch when I came to this organization, really helped me, thrust me into the spotlight that I’m in now. So for me it was a terrible moment to see someone that I love so much, having to part ways with him. But that’s the way of the NFL, that’s the way things go, and I’m very excited for what we have here now and the direction we’re heading in.”
Smith said he hasn’t gotten to know new coach Mike Macdonald as well but likes what he has seen of him.
“I’ve had a few phone conversations with him, from the time he was hired we were on the phone, talking and texting and in great communication,” Smith said. “From what I’ve seen so far he has a vision, he’s got a plan.”
Macdonald is the seventh head coach Smith has played for in his NFL career.
