Seahawks HC: John Skelton is ‘a winner’
Sep 5, 2012, 8:25 PM | Updated: 9:44 pm
September 5, 2012: Behind Enemy Lines
Pete Carroll is entering his third year in Seattle. As the Seahawks head coach, he is 3-1 versus the Cardinals, suffering that lone defeat in last season’s finale, 23-20 in overtime at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Carroll spoke to those of us in the local media on a conference call earlier Wednesday:
on John Skelton
I have great respect for him because he can play the position. He does so many things that are hard to coach: the toughness he has, the arm strength that he has but more than that he’s really resourceful. He’s very good in the pocket…and he’s got the guts that the big-time quarterbacks have to make the tough throws. He’s just getting started. But more than all that, he’s a winner. He’s won his games.
on Larry Fitzgerald
We’re just going to try and keep him under wraps. We know he’s going to catch his balls. They move him around so much that they can get completions to him. It’s just about the plays that he can make in crucial times, which he did last year. He came up with some great plays. You guys remember the big slant route he catches with one hand, another play over the middle, just some terrific plays to make crucial first downs. And he catches and runs really well. We just have the utmost respect for him. We’re going to try to keep him from controlling the football game.
on Cardinals running backs
We know Ryan (Williams) is a great player. And we think (LaRod) Stephens-Howling is a fantastic player too, with all of the speed he has and the playmaking that he has. We have a lot of respect for this position group. We know that they can score from anywhere. They make a lot of big plays in the run game.
on Cardinals defense
They’re really good. They’re really a problem. We see them so much in the mold of the Steelers…you can see the influence. [It’s] a most difficult package on defense. Ray (Horton) really knows what he’s doing with it and he’s got a great attitude about going after it. Very tough and aggressive. It gives us all the problems that anybody could want let alone a first time starter (at quarterback).
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