No one is replaying the final moments from Super Bowl XLIX more than Pete Carroll. The Seattle Seahawks’ head coach sat down with Matt Lauer on the Today show on Thursday, days after his team’s loss to the New England Patriots, admitting that the journey has been rather emotional for him.
Lauer first thanked Carroll for joining him. “I want to start with full disclosure,” the longtime morning show host noted. “I was at the game Sunday with my son and I said it to my viewers that I thought it was the worst call I’ve ever seen. For that reason, I’m even more grateful that you’re sitting here with me.”
“I’m in the middle of this focus that’s calling me to be accountable,” Carroll, 63, responded of why he chose to address millions of Super Bowl viewers. “I feel responsible for a lot of people right now. It extends beyond that when you go out into our community… Our game hit them really hard.”
Carroll emphasized to Lauer that since his controversial final play call, he’s been trying to “get right” himself. (The play resulted in a Patriots’ interception at the 1-yard line, which solidified the Patriots’ Super Bowl win in the final score of 28 to 24.) “The instant of the turnover, the gravity of what happened, I understood,” Carroll recalled. “I haven’t seen that replay yet.”
As callous as his decision appeared to viewers, Carroll claimed that it wasn’t the case. “I never make a call thinking it’s gonna go bad,” Carroll reflected. “This was properly planned. It just didn’t turn out well.”
For the former USC and Patriots coach, the worst moment was a sleepless Sunday night, which he admitted included tears. “4:05 in the a.m.,” Carroll revealed of when he cried. “That’s what happened. That was my opportunity to go ahead and visit it.”
He added: “There’s just so much responsibility to shoulder knowing that I was making the call and leading the charge… It was me.”
Despite everything that happened, Carroll said this one call would not define his long career. “It was the worst result of a call ever,” he noted. “The call would’ve been a great one if we caught it.”
