The Seattle Seahawks and head coach Pete Carroll have been synonymous for the last 14 seasons.
Earlier this week, the 72-year-old met with his team and expressed a strong desire to keep coaching, but just a few days later, the NFL world was shocked the Seahawks would be moving on from their longtime leader and front man announced he reached a mutual agreement with the organization to step away from his role as head coach.
Pete Carroll and the Seahawks narrowly missed the playoffs this season with a 9-8 record. In the last three years, the Seahawks put up a 25-26 record with just one playoff appearance. It has been a far cry from the run between 2012 and 2020 when the team won 68 percent of its games and had the second-best record in all of football during that span.
The Seattle Seahawks hit the greatest of heights in the mid-2010s with the Legion of Boom on defense and Russell Wilson and Marshawn Lynch on offense. Seattle won Super Bowl XLVIII over the Broncos and narrowly lost the following season to the Patriots in a game that wound up collapsing the burgeoning dynasty.
Carroll, the oldest coach in the NFL, signed a five-year contract extension in 2020. He finishes his career in Seattle with a regular-season record of 137-89-1. His overall regular-season record is 170-120-1, including three years in New England and a year as the Jets head coach in 1994.
Pete Carroll Shows Raw Emotion In Final Press Conference As Seattle Seahawks Head Coach, Sounds Like He’s Not Done
In typical Pete Carroll fashion, the 72-year old entered his final press conference as the team’s head coach with entrance music.
But the fun-natured, sometimes quirky outside-the-box football coach quickly shifted the tone when he got behind the podium.
“It’s been an honor and a thrill to be part of this program,” an emotional Carroll said Wednesday. “I’ve loved every minute of it. You’ve watched me love it in particular. It’s exciting that there’s such a future here. You can see it. We know it’s happening. It’s bright. The club’s got great places to go, and there’s great chances. It’ll never happen automatically. There’s a lot of work to be done and all of that, but the future is bright.”
Pete Carroll was visibly emotional a few times during the press conference.
He cried several visible tears when discussing his family and how they have always stood by his side through the ups and downs, called him out when they didn’t agree with something he did and been his rock for the last 14 years.
HEARTWARMING: #Seahawks coach Pete Carroll is CRYING at his presser while taking about how much his wife and family have done for him to get to where he is
🥹🥹🥹
pic.twitter.com/hDR7w15JPV— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) January 10, 2024
He got equally as emotional when talking about his players — and the coach that has been beloved by nearly every athlete that has played under him — has already received feedback from some of the key weapons during his most successful years with the Seattle Seahawks.
Russell Wilson, who Carroll took a chance on as an undersized QB out of NC State and Wisconsin and ended up being one of the league’s best signal callers, while helping Seattle win a Super Bow, took to social media to give his appreciation to his former coach.
One of the Greatest Ever.
“Keep Shooting” Coach.
Grateful for the memories. @PeteCarrollBest is Ahead. https://t.co/ct3W4IYIyf
— Russell Wilson (@DangeRussWilson) January 10, 2024
Richard Sherman seemed equally surprised with Pete Carroll stepping away as the team’s head coach.
“It’s it’s been a long time I’ve been there, 14 years winningest coach in Seattle Seahawks history obviously,” Richard Sherman said. “It’s a decision that seems like it was made by ownership to move in a different direction. It looks like he’ll still be a part of the organization in an advisory role, but I’m very surprised by this decision.”
Pete Carroll closed sounding like a man who wasn’t done with coaching quite yet, leaving the door open for new possibilities.
Pete Carroll sounds like he would like to be the next head coach of the #Eagles
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) January 10, 2024
“That’s it for now, I’m freaking jacked. I’m fired up. I’m not tired. I’m not worn down,” Carroll closed. “You guys tried your best to wear me out, you know it’s the the end of the season and I’m supposed to go lay on a cot somewhere. I ain’t feeling like that. feel like that was coming. I don’t know. I got no idea and I really don’t care right now but I do and I’m excited about it because there’s a lot to learn. There’s a lot to study. There are many discoveries that are going to come our way.”
NFL Insider Tom Peliserro reported Carroll planned on being the team’s head coach Monday when he met with his players, so the move likely came from above him.
Did Pete Carroll see this coming when he met with #Seahawks players on Monday? "No."
Nevertheless, Carroll giving about as classy and authentic a goodbye as you could imagine in his ongoing presser on @nflnetwork https://t.co/h0BsomSMb9
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 10, 2024
There’s speculation the Seattle Seahawks are targeting Dallas Cowboys DC Dan Quinn as their next head coach to take over for Pete Carrolll.