Sherman was vocal on his decision to leave Seattle, suggesting the Seahawks were no longer as cohesive as before and claiming he had been “disrespected” by the way he was treated following an Achilles injury.
But the cornerback will return to CenturyLink Field this week for the first time since joining the San Francisco 49ers. Carroll says he understands why Sherman made the move.
“Sherm had to do what he had to do,” the Seattle coach told a news conference. “He had to change allegiance and get tuned into his new team, and whatever took place was OK. I didn’t care.
“I knew who Sherm is. I knew him way differently than you guys probably think I do. I think the world of him and there were times, along the time when he was here, that he said things I might not have agreed with and had to work through and all of that.
“I don’t care [what he said]. I couldn’t care less about that.”
Sherman’s comments included criticism of Carroll, telling media that he might be better suited to college football, but the Seahawks coach believes the player was worth the “challenge”.
“He was a challenge, yeah,” Carroll said. “He was a challenge like many of our guys have been. It was a challenge in being really willing to work with somebody and see the beautiful aspects of this individual.
“He’s an amazing person and I had great respect for him. So I was challenged because he’s brilliant and he had a lot of thoughts and this tremendous competitiveness about him that took him places that other athletes don’t get to.
“Every bit of it was worth it. Every bit of it was worth it.”
Carroll added: “I think he’s loved around here for all the great stuff that he did. I don’t think our fans think any differently than I do about that.”
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