According to ESPN sources, Pete Carroll, USC head coach is “interested” in the coaching vacancy in Atlanta.   I have one question for Pete: Why?

Why would anyone be interested in the Atlanta Falcons job?   Trade in what is one of the top five college coaching positions for what is certainly in the bottom five as far as NFL coaching positions go?  The franchise is a mess, with the memory of Mike Vick still dogging the Falcons. Bobby Petrino added to the Falcons migraine headache by bailing on the Falcons after a 31-14 loss to the New Orleans Saints in week 14 of the season.   The Falcons limp into the off-season as the laughingstock of the NFL, so why is Carroll even considering the Atlanta job? 

While money is certainly a consideration, Arthur Blank will certainly back up the truck and pay at least five million a year to his next head coach, Carroll is probably more interested in power.  Blank in a desperate situation after two horrible football decisions, overpaying Vick with a ridiculous 10-year $130 million contract extension, and firing the best coach he ever had in Jim Mora Jr. 

So now Blank is once again trying to buy his way out of a hole by offering total control and lots of cash to Pete Carroll.  

Carroll has certainly proven his mettle at USC.  He has an impressive 76-14 record at the USC helm, with two national titles to add to his resume.  His NFL career was average at best, pulling a 33-31 record with the New York Jets and the New England Patriots.  

So is Pete Carroll the man to pull Atlanta out of the NFL sewer?  Carroll came to USC when the program was down, and brought it back to national prominence.  Speculation has been that Carroll was using USC as a stepping stone to get back in the NFL game.   Over the last three years, there have been no less than a dozen NFL head coaching jobs available, and while Carroll’s name has been linked with several openings, he has never been a serious candidate.