The Seahawks have called a press conference for Friday morning, and by all accounts it will be to announce a contract extension for head coach Pete Carroll.
Carroll, who in four seasons helped turn the Seahawks from a team coming off back-to-back double-digit loss campaigns to Super Bowl champions, was heading into the final year of the five-year, $35 million deal he signed in January of 2010.
According to multiple reports, including one from the league’s website which first reported the news, the press conference is indeed to announce an extension for Carroll, not a player. The initial speculation after the press conference was announced Thursday night was that either Earl Thomas or Richard Sherman had signed a new deal, but apparently that will have to wait. Thomas’ agent confirmed to The Herald that Friday’s presser indeed had nothing to do with his client, and Sports Radio 950 KJR’s Curtis Crabtree reported it wasn’t for a Sherman extension either.
While keeping Carroll, who along with general manager John Schneider led the Seahawks to the first Super Bowl title in franchise history, is big for the Seahawks, the news hardly comes as a surprise. Carroll has said repeatedly how ideal Seattle’s front office setup is for him. He’s a West Coast guy, and it’s hard to imagine anyone winning a bidding war with Seahawks owner Paul Allen had Carroll hit the open market a year from now.
In four seasons in Seattle, Carroll has a 38-26 record in the regular season and has led the Seahawks to the playoffs three times, winning two NFC West titles and one Super Bowl. Seattle has a 5-2 postseason record under Carroll.
Seahawks sign long snapper
In case a punter from Regina, Saskatchewan wasn’t enough for the Seahawks, they added a long snapper from that same Canadian city on Thursday, signing long snapper Jorgen Hus.
Hus signed with St. Louis as an undrafted rookie last year, but was released before the start of the season. According to the Leader-Post, Seahawks punter Jon Ryan and Hus are friends and work out in the offseason together, and Ryan put in a good word for Hus with Seahawks special teams coach Brian Schneider.
Hus would have to beat out current long snapper Clint Gresham to stick around in Seattle. Gresham signed a two-year deal with the Seahawks prior to last season, and is due $750,000 in 2014. While not a minimum-salary deal, Gresham’s contract is hardly big enough for the Seahawks to cut him for salary-cap reasons, so for Hus to earn a roster spot, he’d have to legitimately beat out McDonald for the job.
Offseason workout dates announced
The NFL announced the dates of offseason workout programs for all 32 teams. Phase one, which for Seattle begins on April 21, is limited to strength and conditioning and physical rehabilitation only. Following the draft, which runs May 8-10, teams can begin organized team activity workouts and minicamps.
Seattle’s OTAs run May 27-29, June 2-3, June 5 and June 9-12. They also have a mandatory minicamp June 17-19.
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