On the eve of the '23 season, I want to celebrate one man. Coach Pete Carroll got more love from Hawks fans in '22 than '21 - by a LONG shot. I found 3 undeniable turning points by analyzing 13K+ tweets from the '22 season.

Yes, I actually collected 13K+ tweets during the season. Fan frustration was had lower peaks and a lower average during '22 than '21.

Turning Point 1

Taysom Hill scores 3 rushing TDs, outguns Seattle 32-39 in Week 5

Our Fan Frustration Index (FFI) tracked the ratio of negative vs positive tweets about Pete within 24 hrs of Seahawks games.

Seahawks fans hit peak frustration with Pete at New Orleans (5x more Negative tweets than Positive tweets).

The failure of the run defense to stop Hill on rushing scores of 8, 9, and 60 yards, plus a failed fake punt created a crescendo of 'fire Pete':

Letting Taysom Hill run in untouched when he cannot pass a lick should cost Pete Carroll his job, not to mention whatever the hell that non-punt was.

— Reverend Paul Revere (@RevPaulRevere) October 9, 2022

Turning Point 2

Seattle falls to the Bucs in Munich (W10).

To Pete's credit, our Hawks were riding a 4-game winning streak coming in. Average frustration during that span was flat (1.0).

Spirits were light, expectations were high.

I wonder if Pete Carroll found any awesome German gum #NFLMunich

— TyTheGamerGuy96 (@TyTheGamerGuy96) November 13, 2022

PFF even included Pete in a mid-season 'Coach of the Year' poll. Always graceful, fans took the opportunity to focus on the bigger story.

Pete Carroll always smiling because they robbed the Broncos

— Phil Dame (@PhilDame3) November 13, 2022

Enter: the Bucs o-line. Fan frustration hit 3.1 on our Index.

Everyone who picked Russell Wilson over Pete Carroll is being vindicated right now

— Mike Bara (@MikeBara333) November 13, 2022

Turning Point 3: Seahawks beat Rams 19-16, earn Wildcard (W18).

Seahawks fans are fascinating & fickle. After five weeks of frustration (Raiders, Panthers, Niners, Chiefs, Jets) (2.7 avg FFI), this win reminded us why postseason matters.

I’m sorry pete carroll. i thought you were the problem and you werent

— StroudsGoat (@StroudToHOU) December 4, 2022

This kicked off an aura of positivity and patience from the fanbase towards Pete. This persisted into the postseason and beyond:
Wildcard (1.8 FFI) (!) despite losing to the Niners
Free Agency (1.1 FFI) signed Dre Jones
2023 Draft (1.0 FFI)

Top Takeaway for 2023

Seahawks fans are more ready to follow Pete Carroll than ever. FFI peaked at a 'mere' 5.0 in '22 (versus 8.2 in '21).

Fans especially liked the two draft classes (1.0 FFI).

Just remember..

The biggest threat to Pete Carroll's future in Seattle - maybe his legacy - is the run defense. Inexplicable '22 losses are still top of mind (Raiders, Panthers, Falcons etc.)

'21 WFT set a record for fan frustration (8.2 FFI). Washington rushed the ball 43 times for 156 yards. Washington had 42 minutes T.O.P. to Seattle's 18'.

DEAR SEAHAWKS FANS, IF YALL ARE STILL DEFENDING PETE CARROLL AFTER THIS GAME JUST UNFOLLOW ME PLEASE IDC

— ️ (@Plazuhbtw) November 30, 2021

The '21 WFT game (8.2 FFI) and '22 Taysom Hill disaster (5.0) were annual peak frustration with Pete. These bloodpressure raisers combined poor run-D, controversial 4th-down decisions, timeouts and challenges.

This concludes a two year project tracking Seahawks fan sentiment towards Pete Carroll. This project was built on the X API using Postman and AWS.

Here's to a great '23. #gohawks

This project is dedicated to my dad, who introduced me to visual storytelling through data. He also let me eat Cheetos and watch Cortez Kennedy every Sunday.

Follow me for future projects.