Seattle nearly made it back-to-back Super Bowl wins the following season, falling to the New England Patriots in the final seconds of Super Bowl XLIX on Wilson’s end-zone interception. In the end, the “Legion of Boom” era amassed five consecutive playoff appearances (2012-2016), three division titles, two NFC championships and a Super Bowl XLVIII win. The Seahawks owned records of 56-23-1 in the regular seasons and 8-4 in the playoffs in that span.
Carroll maintained a competitive squad after the “LOB” era, producing three consecutive playoff-bound campaigns (2018-2020), however but he managed only one playoff win in that span as his defenses sagged in recent seasons.
Following a 2021 campaign that saw Carroll’s first losing record in nearly a decade, the Wilson era came to an end when the QB was traded to the Broncos. But Carroll found success the following year with Geno Smith, who led the Seahawks to a wild-card berth along his Comeback Player of the Year campaign.
However, Seattle couldn’t follow up with a similar postseason run in 2023, finishing 9-8 in back-to-back seasons.
Under Carroll’s guidance, the Seahawks generated one Super Bowl, two NFC championships, and five NFC West titles. The club also went through thousands of pieces of chewing gum.
Spinning forward, Seattle will seek out its first head coach since Jody Allen took over for the late Paul Allen, her brother. Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who spent four seasons as an assistant in Seattle, including DC under Carroll in 2013-2014, is considered a strong candidate, per Rapoport.
The man leading that search will be general manager John Schneider, who’s been the Seahawks’ GM since 2010 side by side with Carroll. Now he’ll be looking for his second head coach to work with and Carroll will be rooting him on.
“I’m so proud, I’m so excited for you to have this opportunity,” an emotional Carroll said. “It’s gonna be cool. It’s always been a great marriage. It’s just unforgettable and I’m just so grateful for that. Going forward, I’ll be your biggest fan. I’ll be right there for you.”
And as Carroll gets ready for his next chapter, he wanted to make one thing clear: He is not done.
“I’m freakin’ jacked. I’m fired up. I’m not tired. I’m not worn down,” Carroll said on Wednesday. “You guys tried your best, you didn’t wear me out. It’s the end of the season, I’m supposed to, you know, lay on a cot somewhere. I ain’t feeling like that. What’s coming? I dunno. I’ve got no idea, and I really don’t care right now. But I’m excited about it because there’s a lot to learn. There’s a lot to study. There’s some great discoveries that are going to come our way.”