Adam Schefter dropped the announcement on Christmas Day that future Hall of Fame head coach Pete Carroll is hoping to come out of retirement next year and resume head coach. It appears he has a destination in mind: the Chicago Bears. Many aren’t surprised. The Bears have a strong situation: cap space, multiple high draft choices, and a young quarterback who’s had a promising rookie year. It isn’t a coincidence that Carroll is expressing interest. Bill Belichick did as well before opting to take over at North Carolina.
Most people are dismissing the idea. Carroll was a terrific coach in Seattle, but he turns 74 next year. History shows coaches always lose their edge by that age. The constant grind of the NFL wears everybody down. However, it would be wise not to dismiss this rumor out of hand. There are two reasons to believe the possibility is more significant than anybody wants to admit.
They are the two men at the top of the organization: Kevin Warren and Ryan Poles.
One must take into account the background of those two men when considering this. When Warren entered the NFL in 1997 with the St. Louis Rams, they hired a 61-year-old Dick Vermeil, who hadn’t coached in 15 years. The team won the Super Bowl three years later. Ryan Poles was a scout in Kansas City when they hired Andy Reid in 2013. He’d been a head coach for over a decade by then, and many felt he’d lost his touch after what happened in Philadelphia. Instead, he completely turned the organization around and now has three Lombardi trophies to his name.
Warren and Poles have seen hiring a proven winner succeed in the past. Pete Carroll is considerably older than Vermeil and Reid were, but good coaches tend to get results. Bruce Arians won a Super Bowl at 68, Jack McKeon won a World Series at 72, and Bobby Bowden won a national championship at 69. These are the types of facts the Bears will have in the back of their minds if they choose to speak with Carroll. Not to mention his reputation for developing quarterbacks, from Carson Palmer to Russell Wilson and Geno Smith.
Ben Johnson might be the current favorite, but ignore the Carroll buzz at your own risk.
