Pete Carroll, Seahawks working on extension per report

For those Seahawks fans sweating the fact that Pete Carroll is entering the final year of his contract with Seattle, there's some encouraging news out of the NFL Combine this afternoon. Per Ian Rapoport, the Seahawks and Carroll are working on an extension.

Pete Carroll is entering the final year of his contract in 2016, and the #Seahawks are working with him on an extension, I'm told.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 26, 2016

"Working with him," in Ian's words, would seem to imply Carroll is interested in staying in Seattle, which is the key variable. Many fear he wants to jump ship and end up back in L.A., and it's hard to ignore the fact that Carroll is the oldest coach in the NFL. Is retirement in the near future? It's unclear, but this news is definitely encouraging from the standpoint that it looks like Carroll at least wants to stay with the Seahawks for a little bit longer. Likewise, the Seahawks obviously want Pete Carroll for the long run. It's a no brainer. He's the architect of Seattle's championship team and he and John Schneider have built a team that looks poised to challenge for more Super Bowl runs.

Rapoport first noted this development on his segment with Ian Furness and Jason Puckett, saying that "from my understanding, they're working on an extension."

Carroll has repeatedly replied "I'm doing great" when asked about any future contract extension over the last few months, and he did so again on Thursday. It seems to be a great sign that there's some work going on behind the scenes to make something happen before the next season starts, so Pete Carroll's contract status isn't a story or distraction next year. Carroll will get paid a lot of money, and his salary -- which could move to over $10 million per year -- does not factor into the salary cap. Paul Allen simply has the discretion here on how much Carroll will get.