In the span of 24 hours, three of the most accomplished football coaches of the 21st century departed their positions, marking the end of some sort of era. Bill Belichick's New England departure did not come as a surprise. It was long rumored than Belichick and the Patriots would potentially part ways at the end of the 2023 season, and that's exactly what happened. The Pats had a succession plan in place, and they pulled the trigger on it. Nick Saban leaving Alabama came as a bigger surprise, but given the fact that Saban is 72 and has already won more national championships than anybody in the history of college football, it doesn't come as a huge shock. That just leaves Pete Carroll.

Maybe it's because Pete Carroll, also 72 years old, still carries himself the same way he did when he was coaching the USC Trojans in his 50s, and as the man leading the Seahawks to the Super Bowl in his 60s, but I was stunned to hear that he wouldn't be back in Seattle next year, and from the sounds of it, Carroll wasn't necessarily on-board with the decision either. There's still a noticeable energy and enthusiasm he displays at all times on the sideline, chomping away at his chewing gum with such vigor, it was like he wants so badly to be on that field with the players he's coaching. But now, the Seattle Seahawks and Carroll decided to part ways, and Carroll, despite acknowledging that he still has the desire to coach, seems indifferent about the idea of coaching somewhere other than in Seattle.

“I don't know,” Carroll responded when asked on The Brock and Salk Show in Seattle if he planned on coaching again. “I've got plenty of energy for it and thought and willingness but I can't imagine that there's a place that's the right one. I don't know. I'm open to everything but I'm not holding my breath on that.”

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GM John Schneider in the middle, Kris Jenkins, Cooper Beebe, Cedric Gray around him, and Seattle Seahawks wallpaper in the background

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A blank silhouette/outline of a person with the logo for the Seattle Seahawks in the middle. On either side of the silhouette/outline are University of Toledo cornerback Quinyon Mitchell and University of Georgia tackle Amarius Mims.

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Former Mike Macdonald and Geno Smith mentor Pete Carroll with John Schneider

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That reads like the answer of a man who never intended to step down this season, and badly wants to continue coaching the team he's led for the last fourteen years. But the Seahawks have opted to go a different direction, and maybe that means Pete Carroll should too.