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In February 2023, reports surfaced that Russell Wilson had asked the Seattle Seahawks management to fire coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider for the 2022 season. The quarterback allegedly felt that Carroll and Schneider had not done enough to help the team win, both for the team and for Wilson personally. This purportedly led to the Seahawks trading Wilson to the Denver Broncos. It was also reported that Wilson wanted to replace Carroll with Sean Payton, who ended up being Wilson’s coach in Denver.
In response to the reports, Wilson took to Twitter to refute them, writing, “I love Pete and he was a father figure to me and John believed in me and drafted me as well. I never wanted them fired. All any of us wanted was to win. I’ll always have respect for them and love for Seattle.” His attorney also denied the claims made by The Athletic.
According to Sports Illustrated, it is normal and expected for owner and coach relationships to change at a popular player’s request (or just because). “Basically: This is one of the most cutthroat businesses in the world, and almost everyone is willing to get someone else fired to save their job, their legacy, their creature comforts or some combination of the three,” Conor Orr wrote. This lack of trust between franchise components is common in many major leagues; it is all very political.
