Pete Carroll responds to criticism from Taylor Mays
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Pete Carroll responded Friday evening to the comments of USC safety Taylor Mays, who criticized his old coach for not preparing him for the NFL draft. Mays slipped out of the first round and was selected 49th by San Francisco.
Here’s what Carroll had to say to Seattle reporters:
Q: On Mays’ comments:
‘Well, first off, I love Taylor. I love the player that he is, and we were thinking that we would have a terrific chance to get him somewhere. When our safety situation came up with Earl, we didn’t think Earl was going to get to us. We jumped at that opportunity there.’I’d like to pick all my guys, but it just didn’t work out, and unfortunately for Taylor, it was a hard day for him. His expectations were very, very high, and mine, too. So I feel for him. But I know what he’s going to be like. He’s going to be ferocious about going about this opportunity with San Francisco. Unfortunately, he’s in the division so we’re going to be battling against him and all that. This is a remarkably competitive guy, and prideful, and I’m sure he’s got a chip on his shoulder, and it’s going to serve him well. It’s not going to help us in the division. He’s a terrific player. He’s an extraordinary, and I felt bad for him, that it didn’t happen quicker in the first round. Certainly, we were ready and would have loved to have had him. Just by the way it fell, we were very excited about Earl. We thought Earl would go 7, 8, 9, right in there.’
Q: Would you have considered him in the second round if he were available?
‘Absolutely. Absolutely. If that would have happened, absolutely, we would have.’
Q: Have you reached out to him?
‘One of our other coaches got a chance, but I haven’t talked to him. He might want to wait a couple of days before he talks to me. I love him. I love him to death, and I know how competitive he is, and I don’t blame him for being the way it is. I would probably be surprised if it was anything other than that.’
-- Sam Farmer