Can championship-winning football coach Pete Carroll return to the sidelines with the Chicago Bears?
If reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefterthe former head coach of the Seattle Seahawks and Southern California Trojans looks to the shores of Lake Michigan as he considers a comeback.
Carroll, 73, led the Seahawks to back-to-back Super Bowls after the 2013 and 2014 seasons, winning the first. In total, he spent 14 seasons in Seattle before being fired in January after back-to-back nine-to-eight seasons. He took on an advisory role with the team after his dismissal in Seattle.
The Bears fired head coach Matt Eberflus, who was hired in 2022, after a 4-8 start and a 14-32 overall record.
The New York Jets and New Orleans Saints also fired their coaches this season.
But it’s the Bears’ job and the opportunity to work with the top overall draft pick of 2024, quarterback Caleb Williams, who has apparently caught the attention of Carroll, who compiled a 170-120-1 record with the New York Jets (1994), New York. English Patriots (1997-99) and Seahawks.
Pete Carroll said Seahawks executives, who are “not football people,” dropped him in Seattle
A view of Soldier Field before a game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Chicago Bears
ESPN reported that Carroll has yet to talk to the Bears or any team about returning to coaching.
Carroll also coached USC (2001-2009) to nine bowl games and national championships in 2003 and 2004. He joins Jim Harbaugh, Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer as the only head coaches to guide teams to the NCAA title game and the Super Lead bowl.
While Carroll is reportedly keeping an eye on Chicago, the Seahawks are preparing to face the Bears with an NFC West title and a playoff berth on the line.
Seattle heads into a must-win game against the host Bears on Thursday night, and even if the Seahawks can beat Chicago and beat the Los Angeles Rams in Week 18, they may still miss the postseason due to the power-of-victory tiebreaker .
If Seattle (8-7) were to get past Los Angeles for a 10-7 finish, the teams would split their season series 1-1, have equal 4-4 records against common opponents and maintain the same record in the conference. leaving the power of victory to decide the fate of the Seahawks and Rams.
And that fifth tiebreaker belongs to Los Angeles.
“We just have to play our role, which is to win,” said Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV. ‘Then let the chips fall where they may. Hopefully we’ll have some luck and get in.”
Seattle fell out of wild-card contention after a 27-24 loss to the Vikings on Sunday. Minnesota trailed 24-20 with less than 4 1/2 minutes remaining, but Sam Darnold threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson with 3:51 remaining.
Jason Myers came up short on a 60-yard field goal attempt with 1:55 to go, preventing the Seahawks from tying the game.
“We have to win two, but it starts with one,” said Seattle quarterback Geno Smith, who had 314 passing yards, three touchdowns and two picks against Minnesota. “We have a strong Chicago team on the road. I know their track record isn’t the best, but if you watch film on those guys, they asked for a strong team with a lot of talent.
‘We have to be ready for a short week off, traveling for Christmas. The boys need to get their minds right and get ready to go.”
Seattle quarterback Geno Smith has kept the Seahawks competitive this year without Carroll
The Bears (4-11) have lost nine straight games, the most recent of which was a 34-17 loss to the Detroit Lions. Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams continued to shine, passing for 334 yards and two touchdowns.
“Every photo is valuable,” Williams said. “There are so many different situations that happen during games that you can learn from and that I learned from this year.”
Williams has built a strong bond with wide receiver Rome Odunze, a fellow first-round pick in this year’s draft. The two combined four times for 77 yards against Detroit.
“From the moment you step on the field with a great player like him, you feel that trust and I think you feed that off each other and I think we do that well,” Odunze said of his relationship with Williams. “But you have to go out and prove it on the field and we have to continue to do that.”
Both the Bears and Seahawks held walkthroughs on Tuesday.
Had Chicago had a full practice, running back Travis Homer (hamstring), left guard Teven Jenkins (calf) and defensive backs Elijah Hicks (ankle/foot) and Tarvarius Moore (knee) would not have been able to participate. For Seattle, running back Kenneth Walker III (ankle) and tight end Brady Russell (foot) were listed as non-participants.