Carroll explains reasoning behind Josh Wilson trade
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll says the emergence of rookie Walter Thurmond and the return to form of veteran Marcus Trufant helped pave the way for Tuesday's surprising trade of cornerback Josh Wilson to the Baltimore Ravens.
Wilson was dealt for a conditional 2011 draft pick, reportedly a fifth-round selection, after spending most of the past two seasons as a starter in the Seahawks' secondary.
Carroll said Kelly Jennings, who had alternated with Wilson on the No. 1 unit throughout training camp, will be the starter opposite Trufant at this point, with Thurmond challenging for that job.
Thurmond becomes the nickel back when Seattle goes with three cornerbacks, with Roy Lewis and Jordan Babineaux also in the mix for that spot, Carroll said.
Thurmond was drafted in the fourth round out of Oregon, but was expected to be a much-higher selection until blowing out his knee in the fourth game of the season. Though he's still playing with a brace on his leg, Thurmond has impressed the Seahawks.
"It's his emergence and Kelly's play together that really gives us a chance to make a move like this," said Carroll.
Clearly the Seahawks felt they were headed toward this Saturday's roster cutdown date with an extra cornerback, which made Wilson -- a second-round pick in 2007 -- expendable. Carroll's motto all through camp has been about competition at every position and, in this case, they felt they had more than would fit in the final roster.
"It has to do with the way Walter stepped up and Tru is playing and some of the younger guys," said GM John Schneider. "It was one of those deals that comes along. We get calls on players and we don't do everything. This is one of those deals we felt we couldn't pass up."
Schneider noted that Wilson will be an unrestricted free agent next season, which set the market for his value.
"Right now with Josh in terms of value ... we felt it was definitely fair," Schneider said.
The Ravens came after Wilson just in the last few days, according to Carroll, who said one of his goals has been accumulating enough talent to have other teams in pursuit of Seahawks' players.
And in this case, he and Schneider felt they had sufficient depth at cornerback that they could make a move to acquire a future pick.
One of the risks, of course, is counting on Thurmond as a rookie.
"Walter has had a great camp," Carroll said. "He's played beautifully for us, he's played probably more than anybody else. So we've got a great look at him and we're real excited about his contribution.
"Walter is an all-around football player. He runs and hits like a safety. He's shown the speed and agility and attitude and mentality. He hasn't backed off anything. We've seen him against a lot of guys in a lot of situations already and he's really on the come. ... We like what he's bringing."
As for why trading Wilson instead of Jennings, who now becomes the full-time starter?
"They were splitting time," said Carroll. "Both guys could play for us. Kelly has done a wonderful job for us. He's really a good technique player and we're pleased as heck to have him. We were able to do this because of those other guys. That's really what made it possible."
Carroll said Leon Washington will be the kickoff return man now with Wilson gone.
While Seahawks fans were largely caught off guard by the move, Wilson told Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com that he welcomes the opportunity to return to Maryland, where he grew up and played his college football.
"There's no place like home," Wilson told Farnsworth. "I went to college a mile away from where I went to high school and now I'm going just down the highway from where I went to college to play in the NFL. So I'm not too upset about that."
The Seahawks immediately filled the roster spot created by the trade by signing defensive end James Wyche, 28, who played in three games with Jacksonville and St. Louis last year in the first regular-season action of his career.
He was a seventh-round draft pick of the Jaguars in 2006 out of Syracuse and was with the Houston Texans this summer.
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