Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider came by to talk about the trade of Josh Wilson to Baltimore. Both said that the team’s depth at cornerback allowed the team to make a move.
“This is an opportunity for us that came along because of our depth at the cornerback position that we’re very happy about,” Carroll said. “The play of Tru, Kelly Jennings, Walter Thurmond, Roy Lewis, and a couple of the young kids too, gives us the opportunity to make a move here.”
With Wilson gone, Kelly Jennings is for now the other starting cornerback along with Marcus Trufant, Carroll said, but rookie Walter Thurmond could push him for that job.
Thurmond for now will be the starting nickel back.
And while receiving a conditional fifth-round pick may not seem like good compensation for a starting corner, Schneider pointed out that Wilson’s status as an unrestricted free agent next year affected his value.
“With him being an unrestricted free agent next year, it was at a point where we felt like it was definitely fair,” Schneider said.
The move also makes Leon Washington the kick returner. The former NY Jet may well have won that job anyway, but Wilson had proven himself as a solid returner, and given that Washington is coming back from a broken leg, there had been some doubt as to whether he would go back to returning kicks.
Schneider was also asked about Leroy Hill, who had his contract restructured today.
“He had a situation that came up, and both sides just felt like we could come up with a solution,” Schneider said. “[VP of football administration] John Idzik and Leroy’s representatives did a nice job of coming up with a situation for the situation that Leroy was involved with.”
Asked if the move clears the way for Hill to be part of the team’s 2010 plans, Carroll said: “We really like the way that Leroy plays and we’re looking forward to him playing for us, yeah, absolutely.”
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