Add yet another team to the list of NFL head-coaching vacancies.
Pete Caroll will not return for a 15th season as the Seattle Seahawks’ head coach, the team announced Wednesday. He will remain with the franchise as an “advisor.”
“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,” Seahawks chair Jody Allen said in a statement, which went on to applaud Carroll’s accomplishments.
Carroll posted a 137-89-1 record as Seahawks head coach, qualifying for the playoffs in 10 of his 14 seasons. He won one Super Bowl and reached another, losing to his former team, the New England Patriots, in Super Bowl XLIX.
The Seahawks finished above .500 in 11 of Carroll’s final 12 seasons and never won fewer than seven games during his tenure. They went 9-8 this season, losing out on the final playoff spot in the NFC by a tiebreaker.
With the 72-year-old Carroll moving upstairs to a new role, the 71-year-old Bill Belichick becomes the NFL’s oldest active head coach. Where Belichick will coach in 2024 remained unclear at the time of Seattle’s announcement.
With Carroll out, seven teams now are in the market for new head coaches: the Seahawks, Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers, Carolina Panthers, Washington Commanders and Atlanta Falcons. The Patriots could join that list in the coming days depending on how they decide to proceed with Belichick.
