Giants' Division Fight Familiar to Seahawks Head Coach Pete Carroll
Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll knows a little something about what the Giants must be going through as far as the rollercoaster ride toward the NFC East title.
Carroll was head coach of a Seahawks team that back in 2010 experienced a similar path toward a division title.
That year, Carroll's first as Seattle's head coach, the Seahawks finished in first place in the NFC West with a 7-9 record and would go on to win a Wild Card game against the Saints before finally being eliminated from the postseason in the divisional round by the Bears.
The Giants, currently 4-7 and in first place in the NFC East, aren't quite there yet as the NFC East is much too close to call at the moment, but it's certainly a strong possibility that the division winner will finish under .500 just as the Seahawks did back in 2010.
But for Carroll's Seahawks, their 7-9 finish, as ugly as it might have initially appeared, helped position the franchise for their most successful decade in their history. Four years later, the Seahawks would go on to win a Super Bowl, and all together, they have been in the postseason in eight of Carroll's seasons so far.
In the four NFC East teams, Carroll sees a division that will likely be a headache to face in the playoffs regardless of who emerges as the winner.
"Whoever comes out of [the NFC East], whoever plays them better lookout," Carroll said.
Carroll, who to this day makes no apologies for his 7-9 squad's accomplishments. In fact, he knows what type of motivation can come from the disrespect a team in the Giants' situation might get right now.
"We took a lot disparaging comments like we didn't belong and all that kind of stuff which just added to the fun of beating the world championships in the opening game," Carrol said.
"There's a lot going on on that side of it and what you want to prove and how you want to go about it.," he said. "I know we had a real rousing game at that time in that opportunity and our guys played great football. That’s what you’ve got to do to win the game and go to the next one."
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