Bill Belichick isn’t the only Super Bowl-winning head coach who’s facing the possibility of coaching his final game on Sunday. The man who stood on the opposite sidelines from him in Super Bowl XLIX, Pete Carroll, is facing his own cloudy future with the Seattle Seahawks.
Retirement Looming for Pete Carroll? Latest on Future
Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times videoed this moment at Seahawks’ practice Friday. The caption, however, is most telling.
“Pete Carroll making the rounds as practice began today. Might be the last home practice of the season, which is a heavy thought,” Condotta shared on X (formerly known as Twitter).
Pete Carroll making the rounds as practice began today. Might be the last home practice of season, which is a heavy thought. pic.twitter.com/BD0YodhGzx
— Bob Condotta (@bcondotta) January 6, 2024
The “heavy thought” doesn’t necessarily stem from Seattle potentially not getting another game at Lumen Field for the rest of the year or the Seahawks possibly missing the playoffs.
The “thought” is whether the end of the Carroll era is looming.
At 8-8, Carroll and the Seahawks find themselves needing a victory and a Green Bay Packers loss to clinch one of the last remaining playoff spots in the NFC. But at 72 years of age, there are fans believing that the Super Bowl XLVIII winner is past his prime.
‘It’s Time for a Change’ Directed Toward Carroll
Members of Seattle’s “12th man” fan base have shown to have lost enthusiasm for the Carroll era.
“I love Pete Carroll. Respect what he has done in Seattle. But it’s time for a change,” one fan posted on X after the Seahawks’ implosion against the Pittsburgh Steelers on New Year’s Eve. “These aren’t swap out a coach or co-ordinator change. The entire system needs to be purged. There are issues on defense and offense. The team is undisciplined. A modern offense is also needed.”
MORE: Seattle Seahawks Depth Chart
Another Seahawks fan believes “it’s time” for a change in leadership by moving on from Carroll and general manager John Schneider.
One more fan became all for a rebuild, saying that there needs to be “a complete tear down” after witnessing what they called “a fitting end to another season of Pete Carroll futility” following the Steelers loss.
Is Carroll Himself Thinking About His Future?
While the thought of Carroll’s end has surfaced in the Pacific Northwest and across the league, Carroll himself is more focused on something else in his immediate future.
That would be the critical Sunday game at Glendale against the Arizona Cardinals.
“We had to win this game anyway,” Carroll said on his radio show on KIRO Newsradio. “Nothing changed about that. It’s just that we were in control of it. And that’s what we forfeited it by not getting it done last week. But we’ve got to win, and now, with a little bit of help (we can make the playoffs).”
He’s crossing into a familiar spot. The Seahawks needed to win in Week 18 against a division rival to secure a final playoff appearance. It also came at the expense of needing help by, guess what? A Packers loss.
Seattle handled what was needed against the Rams, then watched the Detroit Lions end the Packers’ season. Except this time, Seattle’s playoff fate has to involve winning on the road against a Cardinals team that has pulled off three upsets against the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Philadelphia Eagles. Green Bay, meanwhile, is back at home against a much-improved Chicago Bears team.
“All we can do is take care of our business. And it’s important enough for every one of these guys to bounce back and play a really good football game, regardless of who it is or what’s going on,” Carroll said on his show. “It’s a good mentality, and that it’s the kind of mentality can give us a chance to be consistent, perform at a high level, not overdo it, overtry and screw it up.”
Carroll is focused on the Cardinals and not his coaching future. He knows that this can’t be a situation where the Seahawks fall in Week 18. If it happens, it’s only going to further enhance the belief that Carroll has his best coaching days behind him and how it’s time for a new era of Seahawks football.
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