Pete Carroll was much more than a head coach for the Seattle Seahawks from 2010 to 2024. He and John Schneider didn’t have the normal coach-general manager relationship. Schneider did not supervise Carroll and Carroll was allowed to make all final roster decisions. They both helped create the culture for the team.

Seattle was known to have a player-friendly franchise and one that treated every employee well. They were the opposite of how the Washington Commanders, for example, were run under owner Dan Snyder. Was the team better on the field because the players were treated better and the organization was satisfactory? Maybe.

However, in the offseason, Carroll was removed from his position (remaining an “adviser” in name only) and that could have spelled trouble for the team’s future. Instead, as Schneider took more control of the team on the field, the transition to new head coach Mike Macdonald was smooth.

This last part was noticed by executives around the league. Maybe they didn’t think the Seahawks would fall apart without Carroll, but no one knew how well the team would perform without him. It turns out Schneider wasn’t just Carroll’s sidekick, as the team seems to function just as smoothly without Carroll.

A new survey of 35 executives and five coaches by The Athletic ranks the Seahawks as the seventh-best front office in the league. One general manager said, “Everyone loves working there. Even with Pete leaving, the transition seemed very smooth.”

One executive said: “(It’s a) very stable organisation. John is a very humble man and has great relationships in the league and in the media… Even though they have had great continuity, he never settles and is always looking for what he wants to achieve.” is next and asks: ‘What am I missing?’ Never thinks he’s the smartest guy in the room and listens. Great leader and respected by everyone because he is so genuine.

True fans will love their favorite team, whether that team wins or loses every game of course, but it’s still nice to get confirmation that in addition to what the team does on the field, good things are also happening within the organization. We don’t want to know that employees are disrespected or that the people in charge are assholes.

Fortunately, that is certainly not the case with the Seahawks. The team may not have won a playoff game in a while, but that could change with the new coaching staff. 12s also know that with Schneider as general manager, the team will always have the chance to be competitive.

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