Pete Carroll Says Referees Played 'Huge Part' in Seahawks' Loss to Packers

Pete Carroll thought the officiating had an outsized impact in the Seattle Seahawks' 17-0 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.

The Seahawks head coach said on 710 ESPN Seattle (via Brady Henderson of ESPN) the referees played "a huge part of the game yesterday":

"They were such a big part of the game yesterday. They were a huge part of the game yesterday. So in an effort to try to make sure that we're really on the same page and we're working through it and we call the game together in a sense, you work at it during the course of the game. I've known some of these guys for a long time and they always show respect, and I try to show respect, too. They've got a job to do and we've got a job to do, and we've got to figure it out. We don't always see eye to eye, that's for darn sure, and that happened yesterday."

Carroll zeroed in on the game's most contentious plays.

In the second quarter, Aaron Rodgers fumbled the snap. Seahawks defensive end Darrell Taylor reacted quickly and jostled for possession with the Packers star. Taylor seemed to wrest the ball away from Rodgers, but referees upheld their original ruling.

Packers cornerback Kevin King was credited with an interception in the end zone in the third quarter despite appearing to lose possession as he went to the ground.

Carroll also expressed frustration with how the officiating crew reversed a first-down call in the first quarter and said Russell Wilson failed to get the eight yards he needed to move the chains. The decision came after a prolonged stoppage in play because of an injured Packers player (Rashan Gary).

"They had minutes and minutes and minutes," Carroll said. "Did they open up the span of time to look at it? I don't know. I don't know how that happened. So I've got some gripes about this. We still had the opportunities. You stack them up, we had plenty of chances and we just didn't take advantage of it."

As the coach stated, the referees weren't the sole reason the Seahawks were shut out at Lambeau Field.

Wilson's performance raised obvious questions about him returning earlier than expected from finger. He finished 20-of-40 for 161 yards and two interceptions, so perhaps he would've benefited from another week of rest.

Seattle's offense as a whole finished with 208 yards. Over the past five years, only 12 teams have won when gaining 210 yards or fewer in the regular season, per Stathead.

In general, it was an outing in which little went right for the Seahawks.