Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay competed against Pete Carroll’s Seattle Seahawks twice a year for seven seasons. Each time the two met, McVay expected a brawl.
So McVay has an intimate knowledge of the type of ultra-competitive, connected teams that Carroll built over more than 50 years as a college and NFL coach.
“Football would be better with Pete Carroll in it,” McVay told FOX Sports. “He’s a guy that I’ve looked up to … the values and principles that he stands for that we’ve tried to mimic and emulate. You’re not going to get anything but respect from me towards him.”
Carroll and the Seahawks parted ways after 14 seasons at the end of a 2023 campaign in which he finished 9-8, just missing the playoffs. Carroll, who turns 74 in September, has been teaching a class on leadership at USC, which he led to two national championships during his nine seasons there, since his departure from the NFL.
According to reports, Carroll wants back into coaching and has shown interest in the vacant Chicago Bears head coaching job. The Bears are reportedly interested in meeting with him.
The Bears should be interested in one of the best culture-builders in professional football. Chicago had a chance to bring in someone of similar stature a year ago but passed on the possibility of hiring Jim Harbaugh.
Instead, Harbaugh became the coach of the Los Angeles Chargers — and has them in the playoffs in his first season. Carroll could have a similar impact on the Bears. Yes, he is 12 years older than Harbaugh, but energy has never been an issue for the always positive Carroll.
The Bears should not again pass on the opportunity to bring in one of the best coaches to ever walk the sidelines. They should hire Carroll.
After burning through five different head coaches over the past decade and with no playoff wins since the 2010 season, the Bears need someone with a championship pedigree to fix the dysfunction within the organization. Carroll has changed cultures both at USC and with the Seahawks, leading both of those teams to championships.
Carroll is synonymous with winning. Seattle won five NFC West titles and reached the playoffs in 10 of his 14 seasons. Seattle never missed the postseason in back-to-back years under Carroll. He won at least nine games in 11 of his last 12 seasons in Seattle, including back-to-back Super Bowl appearances in 2013 and 2014 — winning it all after the 2013 season.
Carroll has an overall record of 170-120-1 in the regular season and 11-11 in the postseason in 18 years as an NFL head coach. His 181 combined wins rank 17th in league history.
[Read more: Pete Carroll on 50 years of coaching: ‘Maintain curiosity, keep figuring out who you are’]
The prevailing theory is that the Bears are interested in hiring a head coach with an offensive background to get the most out of No. 1 pick Caleb Williams. No, Carroll is not an offensive coach, but he’s still a quarterback whisperer, according to Matt Hasselbeck, who served as Carroll’s first starting QB with the Seahawks.
“We love to give all these offensive coaches credit for their quarterback doing well,” Hasselbeck told FOX Sports. “And sometimes, when a defensive coach does a great job with a quarterback, we don’t give them any credit.
“I know playing for Pete, while there were some growing pains and things like that for me, there were some really good things that helped me a lot.”
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Carroll understands how to get the best out of his quarterbacks. Just look at the success he had with Russell Wilson and Geno Smith in Seattle. Wilson, an undersized QB whom the Seahawks drafted in the third round, had his best NFL seasons under Carroll, while Smith experienced a rebirth and made the Pro Bowl as Wilson’s replacement.
And at USC under Carroll, Carson Palmer, Mark Sanchez and Matt Leinart all developed into top-10 draft picks.
Because of his defensive background, Carroll has an intimate understanding of how to mentor quarterbacks, so they are confident and get the most out of their ability. And he would take a measured, patient approach in developing Williams, who has shown promise this season amid the Bears’ struggles.
“It’s such a hard job,” Carroll said about the quarterback position. “Anything you do to add on and make it more challenging just makes them function at a lower level. It’s all part of that type of thinking, and it’s the approach to the game and the way you make your team up.
“It’s why I always talk about the running game. Everybody thinks I’m a run nut. Well, that’s not it at all. It’s to make the game better for our quarterback, and to make our team better. It’s all about a philosophy and approach that connects with the QB position. I feel like I’m coaching the quarterback the whole time. I always do.”
Carroll would also create a unifying, organizational stability because of his ability to forge strong relationships with players and other staff members. And he’s not afraid to make drastic, substantive changes, as evidenced by the 284 roster transactions the Seahawks made in his first year, an NFL record at that time.
There are certainly question marks that come with hiring Carroll. Can he withstand the rigors of being an NFL coach at age 74, and what would the succession plan be should he move on after a few seasons? How much control over personnel would he demand as head coach, and how would he work in concert with GM Ryan Poles and team president Kevin Warren?
Here’s another key question: Who would Carroll bring in as offensive coordinator? That person, working closely with Williams, will be critical to Chicago’s success. The Bears hired and fired Shane Waldron, Carroll’s former OC in Seattle, this season.
Darrell Bevell or Brian Schottenheimer, other former Seahawks offensive coordinators, could make sense. Or perhaps Carroll would look to bring in an up-and-coming offensive mind to help develop Williams.
But those are hurdles Carroll has the background to overcome. In the best division in football — with talented head coaches Dan Campbell, Matt LaFleur and Kevin O’Connell — the Bears would have a coach in Carroll who could instantly compete, providing a charismatic presence that would attract national attention.
And, more importantly, he would build a winning culture the Bears haven’t had in years.
Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.
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