Pete Carroll personal email to 12s is a must-read for all Seahawks fans

Jerry Glanville once famously said that the NFL stands for "Not For Long." This is almost always true. Even coaches that have reached the highest highs in the league can be thrown out like yesterday's garbage after a bad season or two, and it's exceedingly rare that a coach and team part ways on good terms.

In Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks, it seems we've found the rare exception. Carroll recently was relieved of his head coaching duties after 14 years with the organization, and though he did express a desire to keep coaching, he doesn't seem bitter about the experience, saying that he and the front office "mutually agreed to set a new course and for the club to take on new leadership," but also saying, "I'm freaking jacked. I'm fired up. I'm not tired. I'm not worn down."

It's this fire and competitiveness that made Seahawks fans fall in love with Carroll in the first place, and the reason why tributes to the beloved coach have been pouring in left and right. The editorial board of the Seattle Times wrote a beautiful tribute to the coach to thank him for his contributions to the team and the Seattle area. A local artist created a mural inspired by his gum-chewing ways. Last but not least, the 12s (as Seahawks fans are collectively known), crowdfunded $10,000 to take out a full-page ad in the Times to show their gratitude for all he's done.

Pete Carroll recently responded to the outpouring of love from Seahawks fans

Carroll has always shown love to the 12th man, and he reciprocated the love shown to him by Seahawks fans one more time this week, saying "the 12s are a one of a kind force, and competing together with you will always be unforgettable." He went on to say that "all the crazy challenges and times we shared, with the wild finishes and last second heroics, were so special because we did it together."

It's easy to get caught up in the cut-throat nature of the NFL. Wins are the currency by which all coaches are measured; they are what keep coaches employed, and any coach that can't produce enough on the field is soon shown the door for someone who can. It even happened with Carroll, who has now given way to former Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald.

Carroll won a lot in Seattle, 170 times in the regular season and 11 times in the playoffs. He brought the Seahawks to the Super Bowl twice and lifted the Lombardi Trophy once. He coached all-time franchise greats like Richard Sherman, Bobby Wagner, Marshawn Lynch, and Russell Wilson. He formed the Legion of Boom.

Sometimes coaching is about more than just wins. Sure, Carroll never would have been able to remain the Seahawks' coach for nearly a decade and a half if he wasn't so successful, but the time those wins afforded him helped him to forge a legacy and a lifetime bond with the Seattle fans and community that any other coach and fanbase would be envious of. Whether Carroll remains with the Seahawks in an advisor role or moves on to coach elsewhere, it doesn't look like that will ever change.