Russell Wilson, Pete Carroll Snipe at Each Other Over Playbook Wristbands

• Seahawks coach Pete Carroll praised quarterback Geno Smith for wearing a playbook wristband, saying there was previously "resistance" to it.
• Russell Wilson responded to the obvious shot by saying the team won a lot of games despite him not wearing a wristband.
• Wilson and the Seahawks were reportedly at odds over the offense, but Wilson hasn't fared better in Denver so far this year.

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Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll and Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson still appear bitter over their split last season.

The Seahawks have played surprisingly well after trading Wilson this past off-season. Speaking to Seattle 710AM radio this week, Carroll praised quarterback Geno Smith's play, noting that Smith wears a wristband with the play calls.

"If you notice, Geno's going off the wristband, and that's a big help," Carroll said. "It's smoothed things out, sped things up, cleaned things up. And that's part of it, too. We never did that before. There was resistance to that, so we didn't do that before."

Though Carroll didn't mention Wilson by name, it was an obvious shot at the former franchise quarterback.

Pete Carroll praised Geno Smith's willingness to wear a playbook wristband during games.

Stephen Brashear/AP Images

Carroll also seemed to imply that Smith is more trusting of the play calls than Wilson was.

"When [offensive coordinator] Shane [Waldron] says something to Geno, he's not doubting it," Carroll said. "He's just going with it, so there's a real immediate flow and that accelerates all the process."

Asked about Carroll's comment on Wednesday, Wilson said the Seahawks were plenty successful without the help of a wristband, adding that he had worn one before.

"I don't know exactly what he said, but [we] won a lot of games there without one on my wrist,'' Wilson told reporters. "I didn't know winning or losing mattered if you wore a wristband or not. I think I'll do whatever it takes to make sure that we're rolling and moving and everything else. The few times I've definitely worn a wristband depending on the game plan, what we've got called and all that stuff.''

Russell Wilson.

Jack Dempsey/AP Images

In the later years of Wilson's Seahawks tenure, there were reports that he and Carroll were at odds over the offense and Wilson's freedom within it.

At the start of the 2020 season, fans called for the Seahawks to "Let Russ cook" — that is, opening up the offense and moving away from a run-heavy approach.

The Seahawks did that and Wilson responded with an inspiring start. Over the first eight games of the season, Wilson threw for 2,541 yards, 28 touchdowns, and eight interceptions, averaging 8.5 yards per attempt, a hot streak that put him in the MVP conversation.

However, Wilson began to struggle, and the Seahawks reined him in. Over the final seven games of the season, Wilson threw for 1,423 yards, 12 touchdowns, and three interceptions, averaging just 6.3 yards per attempt. His pass attempts per game also went down.

The Seahawks went back to a more conservative, run-based approach in 2021, and Wilson's completion percentage, total yards, touchdown percentage, and yards per attempt all fell. Wilson played in only 14 games and the Seahawks went 6-8, likely spurring his exit to the Broncos.

Things haven't been much prettier in Denver, however, as Wilson and his team have struggled through a sluggish offense. The quarterback has thrown for just six touchdowns in eight games this year, but as ESPN's Jeff Legwold mentioned, he did wear a playbook wristband in a Week 8 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

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