SEATTLE — Pete Carroll never appears calm about anything. He speaks like he’s stuck in fast-forward and stalks the sideline with a bundle of youthful energy.

So maybe the Seahawks’ first-year coach caught himself by surprise with how mellow he was in the minutes after Seattle shocked the rest of football with its stunning upset of the defending Super Bowl champions.

“It’s funny I’m so calm about this. You’d all think that I’d be all pumped up and jacked up, but there is just a calm about it,” Carroll said. “I’m just so proud to be part of this thing and see these guys come through like this and we’re done; we’re talking about next week already.”

The reason Seattle is talking about a trip to the divisional round of the playoffs is almost as shocking as its 41-36 upset of the New Orleans Saints on Saturday. The Seahawks didn’t just beat New Orleans. This wasn’t a fluky victory based on external forces like weather or a long list of Saints mistakes.

The Seahawks (8-9) somehow managed to win a shootout against New Orleans. Matt Hasselbeck threw four touchdowns in one of the finest performances of his career, and Marshawn Lynch capped the upset with an electrifying 67-yard touchdown run that was going viral on the Internet after Lynch shed at least a half-dozen tacklers on his way to the end zone.

It all seemed so unlikely — the first division champs in league history with a losing record, and a 10-point home underdog, booting the reigning champs out of the playoffs. But having served as the punch line of the playoffs for a week, the Seahawks did more than just validate their place in the postseason.

“We just beat the world champs and that’s a great feeling,” Hasselbeck said. “And we worked hard to do it. It wasn’t like it kind of happened.”