Coach Carroll kept most of his answers short and sweet. He seemed very eager to get back on the field after weeks performance. The big take-away from today’s presser is that Richard Sherman will retain his questionable status, but he looked good at practice. K.J Wright and Michael Bennett who also missed practices, are not a concern to coach and should be ready to go. There were no offensive line questions, but the press did remember to wish coach a happy birthday.
“We’re really looking forward to coming home. It’s really fun to be back home. There’s so much attention to it for us, it’s such a great thrill to play here. We’re looking forward to it.
What can you tell us about Richard Sherman?
“He did well today. He practiced the whole practice. So, he missed a couple days of rest and we’ll see how he is tomorrow all the way to game day. But he looked really good.
Did he play through the injury in Green Bay? [Couldn’t hear question]
“He felt it, and he did have to play through some. His attitude about being injured, and whether he can play or not is so off the charts courageous =, determined, and committed. He just won’t accept it. There will always be people who heal better than others, and we’ll see how this works out, but you couldn’t ask for a guy’s attitude to be more on point to heal himself. Eventually our bodies do heal, and if we have something to do with it, whatever. He looks like he can play. He looked good today.”
Is it fair to say that it’s more likely that he [Richard Sherman] does play?
“That’s what questionable is [laughs]. I don’t know. You define it. Questionable”
You haven’t had to play a game without him since early in the 2011 season-
“He’s reminded me of that. He’s reminded me of that during the week here. We haven’t missed him in a long time, so.”
Terence Garvin, what is his situation?
“He’s a little further away, and didn’t get to do as much stuff. Um, we’ll see.”
Would Michael Wilhoite slide in there?
“Mike’s played that spot all along. Yes, Mike’s a likely candidate to play there.”
What does he look like to you getting back at this point? [Question based on answer]
“It’s his first week back in some time. Mike got off to a great start with us and then a couple different things kept him away for some time. Very smart player. Very savvy guy. He knows what he’s doing. He’ll play good football for us.”
K.J [Wright] missed a day or two of practice?
“Yes, earlier. He’s fine.”
Shaquill [Griffin] too?
“He did miss Wednesday. He’s back. He did everything Thursday and Friday.”
What about Michael Bennett?
“If you noticed, Mike historically, we’ve given him a day for a couple years now. So, we find a day, the best day to help him recover and we’ve been committed to that for a long time.”
Working Thomas [Rawls] back into things, do you have a thought in your mind of how you want the running backs –
“I haven’t thought about that at all. I didn’t even come to me yet, gosh I’m glad you brought it up. Um, I’ll come to some conclusion here eventually [laughs]. Of course we’re thinking about it. We’re going to play him. We’re fired up that he’s going to play. We’re anxious to see him play. I’m hoping he has a really good clear opportunity to get back into the flow of things and he’s been such a fun player to watch. We’re excited to see him back. We’ll see what happens”
Is everybody just ready to get back on the field?
“We can’t wait. We’re chomping at the bit. There’s some concern about being over anxious and trying too hard and I don’t want that to happen at all, I want us to go play like we’re capable. So, from this point as we get closer and the excitement and the energy builds I’m going to be working to keep them level and play the kind of football we’re accustomed to playing and not overdo it. But we have high standards, and we didn’t meet it last week and our guys are determined to get back on track.
Is that something you have to [say to] Shaquill [Griffin] only because he wants to do so well as a rookie?
“There’s a lot of guys. Lot of guys. Shaq has been really on point, but it’s so early we have to see how he will respond from his first real game in the NFL and coming back the next week. That’s the kind of stuff we’re on as coaches. We’re watching everything they’re doing and we have a thought that everything counts and if you watch him really carefully you can see what’s cooking and what’s happening. In particular, he’s had a great week again. He sat out Wednesday and came back Thursday and Friday and looked like he was tight on point. So, that’s what we have to go on right now. That’s a really important part of our job. To monitor the guys as they go and how they handle the rigors and the challenges of the season, or maybe a particular game or occurrence, or the media, or whatever. All of the factors that can enter in, and try to help them through it.”
The amount of work you want to get certain running backs, how fluid can that be once the game starts?
“Very [laughs]. You said fluid? Very [shrugs]. I mean, I don’t know how to answer that.”
Do you have a plan going in, saying I want to get this guy a lot of work, and this guy a lot of work? Is that subject to change once the game starts?
“Yes [laughs]. You’re on it. That’s exactly right”
Davis Bass, what did you think of how he played last week?
“You know, he didn’t play a lot of plays. About 15 plays he got. He didn’t get much of a chance to do anything outside of just the framework of the defense. But he played solid and contributed well.”
He probably won’t be back this year, but how did DeAndre Elliott’s surgery go?
“Everything that I’ve heard is on track. I don’t know anything specific about it other than that. It’ll take a while before we know.”
What difference did Sheldon Richardson make? [Couldn’t understand question]
“He played good solid football for us. I think there was a little of looking around to make sure he was in the right spots and stuff like that. I think he will be more freed up this time around just naturally. So, I’m anxious to see different kinds of situations to gain more information on him. But we’re really expecting him to be a big factor. He good solid ball for us. I think he had two different instances where he forced guys to hold him, which were big plays for us. Otherwise he might have had sacks on both those plays. So, he contributed measurably there.”
Any birthday plans?
“Yes [laughs]. I’m doing lots of one answers for you bro.”