Pete Carroll asks us to cut Earl Thomas a ‘little slack’

Earl Thomas received criticism for an obscene gesture on Sunday. Pete Carroll thinks we need to cut Thomas a little slack.

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll wants those who are criticizing safety Earl Thomas to be more forgiving.

Thomas gave the finger to the Seahawks sideline as he was carted off the field Sunday evening against the Arizona Cardinals. Thomas suffered a lower leg injury and has been ruled for the season. The six-time Pro-Bowler has received backlash for his conduct toward his own organization, and the general consensus is that the behavior was inappropriate.

Carroll has decided to take a more forgiving route, though, and he thinks those who are condemning Thomas should do the same. Carroll believes that understanding Thomas’ situation and his dedication to the game should allow his detractors to cut the All-Pro safety some slack.

“People that are criticizing whatever happened don’t understand. This was an earth-shattering moment for a kid. He’s trying to play this game he loves and all of sudden this happens again. He knew exactly what happened to him so he went right to what it’s going to take to get back,” Carroll said in an interview with KIRO-AM 710 ESPN Seattle.

“He had it all just totally figured out and was as emotional as you can get. … Give him a little slack. This is a very, very difficult moment that most people wouldn’t understand what that was all about.”

An interesting opinion from Carroll, to say the least. From Thomas’ perspective, Carroll is the one who isn’t seeing the dedication and love Thomas has for the game. If he did, he would have pressured the front office to give him a larger contract.

The man who can push for those contracts is the one telling Thomas’ detractors to cut him some slack. If Carroll had actually pushed for a bigger contract, maybe Thomas wouldn’t have felt the need to show him and the rest of the Seahawks players and coaches the finger.