Six coordinators new Seattle Seahawks head coach should hire

The Seattle Seahawks and Pete Carroll have mutually decided to part ways in terms of Carroll being the head coach. Carroll will stay with the organization as an advisor moving forward. That is unless he gets a coaching offer elsewhere that he likes.

There are plenty of rumors about who Seattle's next head coach will be. Interviews have not even started yet, however. And we do not know yet who the Seahawks will ask to interview to replace Carroll.

What we do know is a new head coach is going to need an offensive and defensive coordinator, of course. Who should the new head coach choose? Here are some suggestions.

Six coordinators Seattle Seahawks new head coach should think of hiring

No. 1 - Frank Smith - Offensive coordinator

As the offensive coordinator for the Dolphins this past season, Thomas was an integral piece to the Dolphins high-powered offense. An understudy of Mike McDaniel, who's quickly becoming one of the public favorite head coaches, Frank Smith, has a great understanding of play-calling and has been highly regarded for his conceptual understanding of the game.

For a coach like Smith to end up as a coordinator again elsewhere, Smith would likely have to fail to snag a head coaching job as the dominos fall and need to be motivated to prove himself away from Mike McDaniel in order to do so.

No. 2 - Wink Martindale - Defensive coordinator

Seattle's defense has been incredibly underwhelming as of late. The importance of a defensive coordinator is equally as vital as hiring a new head coach. Wink Martindale is renowned as one of the most creative defensive coordinators ever to wear a headset.

However, Wink brings a rugged texture and can sometimes be slightly blunt with upper management. His skill as a defensive coach is never questioned, and his ability to create successful blitz packages could be exactly what the Seattle defense lacks.

No. 3 - Eric Bieniemy - Offensive coordinator

Eric Bieniemy has had an unexpected path to his current coaching status. With Ron Rivera out in Washington, that likely means Bieniemy will look elsewhere also. If Eric had taken the opportunity while he was the chief OC, Bieniemy would surely be a head coach somewhere in the NFL, as he had many opportunities while the Chief's offense was on such a meteoric rise.

Unfortunately, the understudy of the great Andy Ried waited a year too long and found himself being told his ties to coach Reid were viewed as a weakness instead of a strength. With Bieniemy likely looking for further employment to prove himself, he may be the perfect candidate to implement a high-flying offense with the Seahawks.

No. 4 - Jarod Mayo - Defensive coordinator

Jarod Mayo was a centerpiece to the great Bill Belichick defenses of the late 2000s and coincidentally found himself on Bill's coaching staff the past two seasons. Original reports were that Mayo could be the successor to the mastermind himself in New England, but recently, there have been murmurs of Jarod interviewing for positions elsewhere.

Former players turned coach can bring a connection to the players in the locker room and a different energy into the sidelines, and that's the most significant impact Mayo could bring to the Seahawks. In a dream scenario, Seattle would land legendary head coach Bill Belichick, and Jarod Mayo would immediately follow to serve as a competent defensive coordinator.

No. 5 - Bobby Slowik - Offensive coordinator

The NFL is a copycat league; it's a known fact that successful concepts will be emulated. Bobby Slowik has done that successfully with the Texans in 2023. Slowik, a former close understudy of 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, has brought early success to the Texans franchise and is instantly considered a top coaching candidate in the NFL.

For the Seahawks to have a chance at Bobby Slowik, he'll likely need to bomb in head coaching interviews. Bobby Slowik is maybe hoping for too much in Seattle, but if the Seahawks wish to get the offense humming, copying the 49er's strategy is the right place to start.

No. 6 - Dave Canales - Offensive coordinator

Former QB coach Dave Canales is a familiar name to the players within the organization. Canales was a massive contributor to Geno Smith's breakout 2022-23 campaign, landing him an offensive coordinator job with the Buccaneers in 2023-24. Dave has led the Buccaneers to a division title one year removed from the Seahawks and salvaged the career of another once-written-off QB in Baker Mayfield. Canales is a logical fit for Seattle, but things such as a Buccaneer's retention or a shiny Head coaching job elsewhere could be enough to keep Canales out of the Pacific Northwest.

Whomever the head coach is in Seattle, he has complete autonomy over the rest of his coaching staff. The Seahawks have already informed both current coordinators to seek employment elsewhere. There must be some contingency plan for the Seahawks, and I don't think we will be getting news on new coaches until the league year officially ends.

With that being said, Retaining Pete Carroll within the organization was crucial to locker room morale and should help ease the transition for the newest staff. For the first time in 15 years, Seattle is in a scary stage of uncertainty but with the potential to improve drastically as a team.