The Seattle Seahawks coaching search to replace Pete Carroll is still ongoing, but new details have emerged regarding what caused the split between the NFL franchise and its storied coach.
Carroll, the winningest coach in Seahawks’ history, was dismissed following the 2023 regular season. While he still works for the organization as an advisor and executive vice president, the 72-year-old has stated he wants to keep coaching.
- Pete Carroll coaching record: 170-120-1 overall (.586), 137-89-1 with the Seattle Seahawks
Related: Seattle Seahawks coaching search now eyeing new top target
The desire to remain an NFL head coach in the face of Seattle’s decision to make a change sparked questions around the NFL. Despite his expressed interest, however, no NFL team has interviewed Carroll nor has there been any strong report linking him to any of the seven other NFL head-coaching vacancies that became available this offseason.
Amid everyone’s focus on the Seahawks coaching search, Carroll has been vocal in explaining his side of the split. In a radio interview, the Super Bowl champion revealed the reason he believes he was fired.
As is customary in the NFL, each side likes to put out its version of what happened and there are typically portions in each that are the truth. Now, following days of discussion regarding Carroll’s side of the vents, new information is depicting what happened from Seattle’s perspective.
Why did the Seattle Seahawks fire Pete Carroll?
Carroll coached the Seahawks from 2010-2023 and before that stint, he served as the USC Trojans head coach from 2001-’09. He has been working through the grind of being a head coach for more than two decades, with a one-year break in 2000 representing his only time away from football since he started climbing the coaching ladder in 1973 as a graduate assistant for the University of the Pacific.
According to Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda, Carroll developed a reputation for flip-flopping on the Seahawks’ organization. He reportedly told team officials late in the 2023 NFL season that he was going to retire after Week 18. Provided that information, Seattle began thinking about a future without him and began researching NFL coaching candidates.
Once the Seahawks coaching search was unofficially underway, Carroll informed the team after Week 18 that he had a change of heart and wanted to remain Seattle’s head coach. However, the Seahawks were committed to their process at that point and they decided it was too late to change course.
Related: Seattle Seahawks draft picks 2024
With the Washington Commanders poised to hire a coordinator as their next head coach, all of the coaching vacancies in the NFL will be filled. Just like with Bill Belichick, it puts Carroll in a position where NFL teams in the 2025 coaching carousel will be even more hesitant to hire a short-term coach who will have spent a year away from the sidelines.