Former Seahawks HC Pete Carroll interested in Bears job

Former Seahawks HC Pete Carroll interested in Bears job

There is always something interesting to unwrap on Christmas morning, and the NFL news cycle is a gift that keeps on giving. On Wednesday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the news that former Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll isn’t just interested in coaching again, but he is specifically interested in the open Chicago Bears job.

The timing of this news is especially notable, considering the Seahawks are gearing up to take on the Bears for a Week 17 Thursday Night Football showdown. Never say Schefter doesn’t know how to drum up peak engagement for his stories.

Of course, I don’t feel like I would be doing my job if I didn’t take a moment to point out Schefter’s tweet isn’t entirely accurate. Yes, those four coaches listed did all win a National Championship in college, and all four did make it to a Super Bowl… but only three of them won a Lombardi. Sorry Jim Harbaugh, but Pete Carroll was a key reason in 2013 why you have yet to win a ring yourself!

Anyways, back to the main story. The Chicago Bears are in the market for a new head coach after parting ways with Matt Eberflus following their disastrous Thanksgiving performance. Eberflus became the first Bears head coach in the 104 year history of the franchise to be fired in-season. Despite Chicago being trapped in the basement of the league’s toughest division (as well as the perpetual dysfunction of the organization) the Bears job will be sure to draw plenty of interest. The roster is solid, and they have former No. 1 overall pick in Caleb Williams as quarterback. Williams may not be living up to his lofty draft position as a rookie, but the man still has a tantalizing amount of talent any coach would love to get a chance at working with.

Carroll being interested in the Chicago job makes sense, but would the Bears be interested in him? I would imagine some of the first responses to this news would be “the last thing Chicago needs is a 73-year-old coach who is defensive minded! It’s an offensive-driven league!”

Let me address the “defensive coach” charge first. Yes, Carroll has been historically known as a defensive coach, but he does not get nearly enough credit for his outstanding work with quarterbacks. In fact, I would argue Carroll deserves to be known as a “quarterback whisperer.” Let’s just look at his NFL quarterbacks, shall we?

  • Russell Wilson – an undersized third round pick who evolved into an incredibly unique, playmaking quarterback. He soon turned into a perennial MVP candidate and became the best signal-caller in Seahawks history. However, the story of Wilson cannot be told without his two years in Denver, as well as his 2022 season – the first without Carroll. They were the two worst years of his career and led to his ouster before his mega contract could even kick in. Wilson has reclaimed some mojo in Pittsburgh, but he still isn’t close to where he was when he was under Carroll’s tutelage.
  • Geno Smith – widely regarded as one of the bigger quarterback busts in recent memory, Smith bounced around the league for several years as a backup before finally earning the starting role in Seattle. Smith led the Seahawks to the playoffs in his first year as a starter and had them alive until Week 18 last year. Smith won Comeback Player of the Year under Carroll and made consecutive Pro Bowl appearances.
  • Drew Lock – yes, I’ll throw some love to Drew Lock here. Lock started two games under Carroll and played well in both, including pulling off an upset win on Monday Night Football. Similar to Wilson, Lock without Carroll in New York has been a disaster this year.

One could also include Carroll getting to the playoffs with an aging Matt Hasselbeck in 2010, as well as nearly getting there in 2011 with Tavaris Jackson. But Carroll’s expertise with quarterbacks is not limited to the NFL. When Carroll was the head coach at USC, his quarterbacks enjoyed tremendous success. Carson Palmer won the Heisman and became the No. 1 overall pick in the 2003 NFL draft. Matt Leinart also won a Heisman, as well as winning two National Championships and making it to a third. Mark Sanchez would go on to be the No. 5 overall pick in the 2009 NFL draft.

I can confidently say Caleb Williams would overwhelmingly benefit from Carroll’s leadership and coaching.

As for the question of age, we should all be so blessed to

  • A) Live to 73
  • B) Look and feel as good as Carroll does at 73

Carroll has arguably more energy than anyone else coaching in the league right now, and as Al Michaels once described him as someone who looks like he “surfs to work.”

Carroll is a future Hall of Fame head coach and one of the best to ever lead a team at any level of football. The Chicago Bears should be willing to take a long, hard look at Carroll and think about what he can offer to their organization.

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