Pete Carroll out as head coach of Seahawks, will remain in Seattle as an adviser

BOSTON -- There was a stunning announcement involving an NFL head coach on Wednesday. Just not one about the guy in New England.

After a 14-year run with the Seahawks, Pete Carroll is out as head coach in Seattle. The Seahawks announced that Carroll will remain with the organization as an adviser.

With the 72-year-old Carroll moving from the sideline to an office, Bill Belichick, 71, is now the oldest head coach in the NFL. Whether he is the head coach in New England or somewhere else next season remains unknown. 

Carroll was hired by Seattle in 2010 after a successful run as head coach at the University of Southern California, and went on to go 137-89 over his 14 seasons with the Seahawks. He won Super Bowl XLVIII over the Denver Broncos for his first and only championship as an NFL head coach. Seattle was back in the Super Bowl again the following season, but lost to the Patriots, 28-24, in a thrilling championship matchup.

The Seahawks famously called for a passing play late in the game at the New England 1-yard line, and Malcolm Butler sealed the win for the Patriots by intercepting Russell Wilson. While the Seahawks made the playoffs in each of the next two seasons, that Super Bowl loss derailed any hopes of Seattle turning into a dynasty. 

Carroll led the Seahawks to the playoffs in 10 of his 14 seasons, and they just missed the postseason in 2023 after going 9-8. 

Carroll started his career as an NFL head coach with the New York Jets in 1994, but was fired after one season when the team went 6-10. He served as defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers for two seasons before he was back in the head coach seat, hired by New England after Bill Parcells left for the Jets.

In his three seasons with the Patriots, Carroll went 27-21 with a pair of playoff appearances. He was fired after an 8-8 season in 1999, which is when the Patriots pried Belichick away from the Jets.

Overall, Carroll went 170-120 over his 18 seasons as an NFL head coach.