The end of an era as Seattle Seahawks say farewell to Pete Carroll

After 14 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Pete Carroll is out as head coach.

“For a variety of reasons, we have mutually agreed to set a new course, and for the club to take on new leadership,” he said during a press conference Wednesday afternoon.

He thanked members of the Seahawks organization, and his wife for her support over the years. Carroll also sang praises for the culture he helped create, and lauded the players, who he said are the backbone of the NFL.

Carroll was also candid.

“What’s coming? I don’t know. I got no idea, and I really don’t care right now, but I’m excited about it.”

The Seahawks organization’s announcement said Carroll will be moving into an “advisor” role with the team, though it’s unclear what exactly that means. But, it’s safe to say it will not be the level of total control he’s held in the past.

“I think that maybe what the average NFL fan doesn’t understand is how much power Pete had within the Seahawks organization, and how uncommon that power is for the average head coach,” said Stacy Rost, a host & writer for Seattle Sports. “This is the winningest Seahawks coach ever, and the only Seahawks coach to have his team win a Super Bowl.”

The initial announcement from Jody Allen and the Seahawks organization made it sound like this was a mutual split, but during Carroll’s press conference Wednesday, he pretty much threw that out the window. He talked about how hard he had competed for the job and said he was “fired up, not tired.”

What happens now is still up in the air. Dan Quinn of the Dallas Cowboys has been named as a possible successor, but we won’t know more until general manager John Schneider starts the process for the Seahawks.

You can listen to Soundside’s full conversation with Stacy Rost by clicking the play icon at the top of this story.