Getty The Cowboys have had a quiet offseason.
Despite being arguably the most successful head coach in Seattle Seahawks franchise history, Pete Carroll appears to be on the hot seat. CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora reported that the Seahawks are having “internal discussions” about firing Carroll at the end of the season.
“Several teams head into Week 18 still conferring about the degree of structural changes they will undertake in 2022,” La Canfora detailed on January 8. “The Seahawks, Texans and Giants are all at least having internal discussions about making a coaching change, league sources said.
“…The Seahawks are considering whether or not a rebuild is required in 2022, sources said, which could lead them to move on from longtime coach Pete Carroll, who is nearing the end of his career and already in his 70s. Moving on from such a winning coach, who has built a unique culture in Seattle, would not be easy, nor would trading future Hall of Fame quarterback Russell Wilson, but given the state of the team’s personnel and its lack of draft capital, neither moving on would be surprising at this point.”
Sports Illustrated’s Mike Fisher reported that Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn would be a top replacement option if the Seahawks move on from Carroll this offseason. Quinn has had two brief stints with the Seahawks under Carroll including as the team’s defensive coordinator during Seattle’s Super Bowl run during the 2013 season.
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Quinn Is a Top Replacement Option for the Seahawks: Report
Fisher added that it is unclear what the Seahawks will do this offseason, but if the opening emerges Quinn would be a top candidate for the potential vacancy. Quinn declined to interview with the Jaguars, but is a popular name in coaching rumors after having transformed the Cowboys defense this season.
“This has advanced well beyond the ‘rumor’ category, just as the Dallas Cowboys’ season has advanced in a positive way and the Seattle Seahawks’ and Denver Broncos’ seasons, not so much: Dan Quinn, the highly coveted defensive coordinator of the Cowboys, will be a ‘top candidate’ for the Broncos job should Denver dismiss Vic Fangio after this weekend,” Fisher explained on January 8. “And he’ll be a top candidate if Seattle parts ways with Pete Carroll as well.
“…There is also sourced information about Quinn going back to Seattle, where he was once the defensive coordinator under head coach Pete Carroll. But Carroll, an institution in Seattle, isn’t on the same thin ice, it seems, as Fangio is.”
Members of the Seahawks Staff Are Unclear About Their Future: Report
Despite Carroll’s insistence that he feels his future is safe in Seattle, there continues to be a growing buzz about a potential change. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported that members of the Seahawks staff feel uncertain about their future as they await word from owner Jody Allen on the state of the franchise.
“Seahawks coach Pete Carroll’s future, on the other hand, is so uncertain as his first losing season in a decade comes to a close that even those who work closely with him on a daily basis don’t know what the near future holds,” Garafolo noted on January 9. “Carroll — who is still owed close to $50 million on his contract through 2025 — and members of the front office are slated to meet with team chairwoman Jody Allen this coming week, though sources informed of the expected sitdowns say that’s commonplace after the season and not an indication significant changes are coming.
“If Carroll ends up out, it won’t be a firing for wins and losses. A Super Bowl champion and the winningest coach in Seahawks history — 118-73-1 with nine playoff appearances in 12 seasons at the helm — Carroll would only be out if he and Seahawks brass aren’t on the same page regarding plans moving forward. Then a mutual parting of the ways would be possible.”
According to NFL insider Mike Silver, “only she knows” has been a popular phrase inside the Seahawks building referring to the lack of clarity about the direction Allen will go regarding making a change at any level.
“I can tell you this about the Seahawks’ situation: No one in the building–not John Schneider, not Pete Carroll, not Russell Wilson–can speak with any authority as to what owner Jody Allen will do (or not do) at season’s end. ‘Only she knows’ is a common refrain,” Silver tweeted on January 8.