Seahawks coach Pete Carroll participated in a conference call with local media Tuesday afternoon. Here is a transcript of the session:
On what the message is for his team after victory on over Lions how they are health-wise
“We’ve got another championship game coming up. We’ve got to do everything we can to put together a great performance to give ourselves a hot against a great team playing there at home. Health-wise, we are in pretty good shape. A couple guys still in question but overall we are pretty strong.”
On how his team has compensated for the loss of safety Earl Thomas to injury
“Steve Terell has stepped up and he’s got to do the job. He’s done really well for us. He’s played a lot. Earl was hurt and then he came back and then he was hurt again so Steve has played about seven games for us. He’s done a good job. He can’t be Earl. He’s just got to do the best he can with how he does it. Earl is a very unique player, a guy that we always miss. But Steve has done a great job stepping up for him.”
On how young Falcons defensive players have developed since regular-season meeting
“They are playing with great intensity, really running to the ball well and hustling. Great finish for them. You can tell that they are more confident and in general playing things really well.”
On how big it was to run the football well against the Lions
“It’s always huge. That’s the way we always hope to play. That’s the balance that we look for. We had a couple games where we didn’t run the ball well over the last three or four, but we’ve had a pretty good run in the second half of the season running it much better than we did in the first half. We feel a lot better about it.”
On Dan Quinn not wanting focus on him this week and the job Quinn did as a Seahawks coordinator
“We always placed all of the focus on Dan when he was here and I’m hoping you will continue to do that there. He really should be the center of the storm. Just keep pumping him up. (Laughter). He’s awesome. He was a great guy to work with. He’s a great coach. He’s great in relating to the players. He was really fun to be around. We had a lot of fun and we wish him the best. We are really excited for his success.”
On the importance of having players with lots of playoffs experience
“I don’t’ think you can replace it. That experience and that which helps you help have really solid leadership is really important, particularly for people who haven’t been there. We have a lot of young guys on our team, as well. It seems like a ton of them are guys that are new to us in the last couple of years. The more experience you can have surround them with the more comfortable they will feel. They don’t have the burden of trying to figure things out they can just go out and play. We are very fortunate to have guys who have been through a lot.”
On if getting through first playoff game allows normalcy to return
“I don’t’ know about that. It’s a pretty quick switch. I think it all helps. We’ve been playing championship games all year. We are going to do everything we can, just like last week and the week before. I know you are hearing the same stuff but that’s how we do it. I don’t know that one week’s experience gets you the wisdom. I think it takes a while. It certainly helps that the guys that have been there are comfortable.”
On the challenge of facing a team with so many receiving threats
“Yeah, they’ve got a great offense. Kyle (Shanahan) is doing a fantastic job. He’s been a guy that I’ve looked at for a long time, really having an eye on the prize here. He knows how it works and how it fits together. He mixes things beautifully. They match stuff with their personnel very well so the guys can do well. They are getting everything they are out of their running backs. They are getting everything they can out of their receivers and quarterback. The o-line is really solid. It’s just a well-oiled machine and it’s what I’ve come to expect from Kyle.”
On the challenge of developing a plan to deal with Julio Jones
“He’s really good. The challenge is the connection that he and the quarterback has, where they will throw the ball at times with impeccable timing and placement and max out an opportunity that really doesn’t look like much. It might look like the guy is covered but they still make a play. Julio has the ability and the catching range and Matt has the sense and the great accuracy to put the ball where he wants to. Things happen that are out of the norm because those guys are connected.
On the Falcons running back duo of Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman
They’ve rushed for close to 2,000 yards and they’ve caught almost 90 passes out of that position. Both guys are really explosive. They have their own style but they both resemble (one another in) production. They are very fortunate. It’s a good way to go.
On if he remembers making “postseason decisions” early in his NFL coaching career
“It doesn’t change at all to me. It’s exactly the same. I don’t see it any different. Why would I coach any different because it’s a playoff game? Why would I see things different because it’s a playoff game? I don’t at all. I can’t even answer that question.”
On Matt Ryan’s improved play ins second year under Kyle Shanahan
“I don’t see him that much differently other than you can see the growth. The thing we talk about is chemistry between throwers and catchers. There really is a lot to that. You can see the benefit of the years together and the benefit of being in the same scheme for two years. They started off like a house of fire two years ago and then it got a little bit hard on them the second half of last year. They just captured what they had gained from the experience: the familiarity with the coach and the scheme and the principles that they are coaching. They are just maximizing it and they are as good as you can get. That is a natural progression if you are fortunate and you have good players and coaches and that is what we are seeing.”
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