Pete Carroll has had a tremendous run with the Seahawks. Hired as the club’s head coach and executive vice president of player operations in January 2010, he has compiled a 101-59-1 regular season record over the past 10+ seasons, to go along with a 10-7 postseason mark. He guided Seattle to its first Super Bowl victory after the 2013 season, and he came devastatingly close to a second Lombardi the following year.
While the infamous end to Super Bowl XLIX will always be a part of Carroll’s legacy, it does not change the fact that he and QB Russell Wilson have established the Seahawks as a perennial championship contender. With Wilson under club control through the 2023 campaign, it stands to reason that the ‘Hawks would want to continue their relationship with Carroll at least that long.
To that end, Seattle is beginning to explore an extension for the 69-year-old sideline general and chewing gum enthusiast, as Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports. Carroll is currently under contract through the 2021 season thanks to the extension he signed in December 2018, but he reiterated earlier this week that he wants to coach well into his 70s.
The $11MM salary he is currently earning ranks him among the highest-paid coaches in the league, and an extension will likely push that figure even higher. Although there is some long-term uncertainty concerning club ownership, La Canfora says the Seahawks are at least three years away from going to market.
Carroll and Patriots head coach Bill Belichick — who replaced Carroll as New England’s HC 20 years ago — will square off tonight and will set a record for the oldest combined age of head coaches in an NFL game.