NFL Dinosaur Extinction: Seahawks' Carroll Fired; Patriots' Belichick Next?
One Hall-of-Fame dinosaur down, one epic extinction to go?
The NFL's oldest coach was fired on Wednesday. Will the second-oldest be far behind?
In a surprising move, the Seattle Seahawks fired 72-year-old Pete Carroll after 14 seasons and a Super Bowl. Meanwhile, 71-year-old Bill Belichick is still in discussions about his future in New England with owner Robert Kraft.
An NFL head coach has now been fired on Sunday (Falcons' Arthur Smith), Monday (Commanders' Ron Rivera), Tuesday (Titans' Mike Vrabel) and Tuesday (Carroll). Surprisingly, Belichick remains employed by the Patriots.
Carroll and Belichick are NFL coaching dinosaurs, with Hall-of-Fame careers combining for 514 wins and seven Super Bowls.
Carroll, remember, coached the last Patriots game without Belichick. He was the coach in 1999; Belichick was hired in 2000. And it was later that Belichick's Patriots beat Carroll's Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX at the end of the 2014 season. Seattle hasn't been back to an AFC Championship Game since, while New England last won a Super Bowl in 2018 and is 29-39 and without a playoff win since Tom Brady left.
But a year after a surprising Wild Card berth, big contract to quarterback Geno Smith and high draft picks in Devon Witherspoon and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the Seahawks took a disappointing step backward. They were 5-2 and trending in the right direction after an exhilarating rally to beat the Cleveland Browns on Halloween weekend but finished 9-8 and missed the playoffs after a surprising Wild Card berth in 2022.
Geno Smith regressed this season. Kenneth Walker III hasn't taken a big leap. DK Metcalf has gone emotionally unchecked. And the defense was manhandled in Week 17's crucial home loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Belichick is a no-nonsense curmudgeon; Carroll a fountain of boundless energy and relentless optimism. Despite their opposing styles, they both are headed for the same destination: the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.
They both also might soon be ex-coaches.
Current NFL head coaching vacancies:
Los Angeles Chargers
Washington Commanders
Carolina Panthers
Tennessee Titans
Las Vegas Raiders
Atlanta Falcons
Seattle Seahawks
