Pete Carroll’s Job Was to Lead His Team to Victory, but He Kept Missing the Mark

After the Seattle Seahawks didn’t make it to the playoffs, fans knew that head coach Pete Carroll’s job could be in jeopardy. Pete has been with the NFL franchise since 2010 and stayed with them through their only Super Bowl in the 2013 season. But 10 years later, the Seahawks have fallen from their pedestal as one of the NFL’s best teams.

In the 2023 season, the Seahawks were far from making the playoffs, let alone playing in and winning the Super Bowl, which is always the ultimate goal. Jody Allen became the owner of the Seahawks after her brother, Paul Allen, died in October 2018. She was faced with some tough decisions. One of those decisions was firing Pete, but why was he fired?

Pete was fired because the Seahawks haven’t been living up to their potential. Unfortunately for Pete, who is now 72, he had no intentions of leaving his post as the head coach. During postgame on Jan. 7 and Jan. 8, 2024, Pete said he had no intentions of retiring and that he fully expected to continue coaching the Seahawks. However, on Jan. 10, 2024, owner Jody Allen said in a statement that they decided to fire Pete.

She said, “After thoughtful meetings and careful consideration for the best interest of the franchise, we have amicably agreed with Pete Carroll that his role will evolve from Head Coach to remain with the organization as an advisor … Pete is the winningest coach in Seahawks history, brought the city its first Super Bowl title, and created a tremendous impact over the past 14 years on the field and in the community.”

Jody continued, “His expertise in leadership and building a championship culture will continue as an integral part of our organization moving forward … Pete will always be a beloved member of the Seahawks family.”

In Pete’s 14-year career with the Seahawks, the 2023 season marks just the fourth time the team has missed the playoffs. But while other years were marked with poor players and injuries, this season should have been an easy path to the playoffs. According to franchise executives, Pete created a team culture of building players up that’s impossible to replicate.

However, because Pete couldn’t quite get the team to where it needed to be in the 2023 season, it made sense to end his tenure with the team. He said after the announcement, “I competed pretty hard to be the coach ... I went along with their intentions."

Throughout his career, Pete was considered one of the Seahawks’ best coaches, although he rarely advanced the team past the Wild Card stage of playoffs. Now, it seems they’re looking to go further and get back into Super Bowl status.

Pete said that he doesn't know where his future in the NFL lies, although the Seahawks have seemingly offered him an advisor position. If another franchise wants to pick him up as a head coach, Pete has shown no signs of slowing down and seems eager to continue doing what he loves.