Seattle Seahawks' Pete Carroll Offers Insight Into Opening Month: 'Getting Better!'

The Seattle Seahawks sit at 3-1 after the opening month of the season, and head coach Pete Carroll likes how the team is currently playing.

Coming into the season, expectations were high for what the Seattle Seahawks could achieve off the back of their performance last season, but a Week 1 home loss to the Los Angeles Rams set the team back.

Since then, it's been all gas and no brakes from coach Pete Carroll's team as they have won three straight games and entered their early bye week in good form.

So, how has Carroll viewed his team's opening month?

“I really liked the last three weeks," Carroll said. "The second half of the first game, that still kills me that we were the way we were. The last three games, we stayed kind of in a mode. We’re playing with the same kind of focus, same kind of intensity. We feel like we’re gaining on some things, we’re getting better at some stuff. 

"We finish in similar fashion, which is something that’s really important to me, telling me how the mentality of our team is. We’ve had three really good, solid settings that we’ve been through, a couple of aways and a home, big trips that we’ve been through, the whole thing. We’ve gained a lot, hopefully, we can keep going.” 

Seattle is in good shape after the first month as the offense, which has still to get either rookie receivers Jaxon Smith-Njigba or Jake Bobo really involved, is ranked sixth for points scored per game (27.8), and the defense has done its part too, ranked 19th for points allowed (22.8 per game).

Pete Carroll has been pleased with Seattle's opening month of football / USA TODAY

Perhaps the most pleasing aspect of Seattle's early season form is that the team has been winning with several players injured or banged up.

Having the bye week so early in the season isn't ideal as there is now a long stretch of the season with no break, but Carroll says the bye has given some of the players struggling with injuries a chance to get healthier.

"For us right now, we like all of the conversations, we have guys having a chance that have been banged up early in the year that have a chance to get back out," Carroll said. "We’ve been making it through with guys stepping up and doing a nice job, and we’re really proud of that, but this will give us a chance to get a little healthier, and we’re going to try to bank on that as we move forward.” 

The Seahawks are in a good spot after the misstep against the Rams, and they will get a better idea of where they sit in the playoff conversation when they take on Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium on Sunday.

Seattle's opening month has been anything but perfect, yet the team has still managed to grind out wins. Now, as players return, perhaps this team that many picked to win the NFC West is ready to take off.