So, a wee bit of a bomb was dropped last week when NFL draft insider Tony Pauline wrote an article that mentioned Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough was gaining first round buzz, and the teams showing the most interest in him have been the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Seattle Seahawks. Alrighty, then.
I will be the first to admit that the news left me with a bunch of conflicted thoughts.
I really liked what Shough had shown at the NFL scouting combine, and how he seemed to come across at the Senior Bowl in practices. He’s a likable personality. He’s tall, athletic, and mature. He has clear tools, and an arm talent that feels very translatable to the NFL. He has intangibles that make him an interesting match for Mike Macdonald, and he feels less of a project than many of the other quarterbacks in this draft, including Jaxson Dart, and Cam Ward. For Seattle, however, I just don’t know if I would like him taken any earlier than round three, and if he goes higher than that, let him be someone else’s prize.
It is funny how fluid the NFL offseason can be. Back in late February/early March, if some NFL insider had told me that Seattle was eyeing taking a quarterback early in this coming draft, I would have been excited about the notion. Having the college football playoffs and the national championship still fresh enough in my mind, I found myself becoming a big time Will Howard fan, and I have liked Jaxson Dart a lot, as well. Seeing Louisville QB Tyler Shough throw at the scouting combine had really turned my eye, as well.
Back then, Seattle still had 34 year old Geno Smith on their roster, and for me, 2025 felt like a good year to take a stab at one of these quarterbacks in the first, or second if they felt really strongly about one of them. The idea made sense. Sign Geno to a short extension to offer him more money up front, and take one of these guys to groom behind him for a couple years, essentially creating a Green Bay Packer Jordan Love scenario.
Two weeks later, this whole notion evaporated after Seattle traded Geno to Las Vegas for a third round pick, and pivoted towards signing Sam Darnold in free agency. With 27 year old Sam Darnold coming in on a three year contract, my entire view of the Seahawk QB situation had suddenly shifted. Seattle got seven years younger at the position in a lateral move that could prove to be an upgrade, given the new Klint Kubiak system, and the potential of Sam being a better fit for it.
For me, this move to Sam Darnold greatly diminishes the need for Seattle to draft QB of the future this year, and I still like a number of quarterbacks in this draft even if none of them appear to be top end prospects. I like Howard, Dart, and Shough quite a lot, actually. I also think Texas QB Quinn Ewers has a little something interesting about him, and could potentially be a good system fit here. I think Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard could honestly be a really interesting draft and slow develop prospect for Seattle if sat patient, and took him in rounds three, four, or five, and same thing with Syracuse QB Kyle McCord.
If Seattle were to draft any one of these guys in rounds three through five, I would be fine with it. These are the rounds that they should properly go in, I feel. The reality is that quarterbacks, in general, tend to get elevated higher up draft boards given the league’s constant need for them, and because of that, many of these guys will probably get drafted much higher in a few weeks time. I just don’t want to see Seattle join the needy lot of teams that will be looking to gobble them up earlier than necessary.
Seattle has seemingly committed to seeing if Sam Darnold can be a long term solution here, I feel like they can, and should be more patient than perhaps a large handful of other teams zeroing in on these prospects. Given the needs that still exist on the offensive line, perhaps the lack of depth at cornerback (and maybe safety), the injury concerns of Cooper Kupp, the lack of a long term solution at tight end, I just don’t want to see Seattle draft a QB any earlier than round three, and I prefer to see them wait it out until day three of the draft, if they can.
It would be cool to see them draft a guy at some point, and I get that lure of wanting to see a talented QB on a rookie contract slow cooking into potentially being an eventual starter. I also see the logic salary cap logic of taking a QB this year in the draft, as well, with Sam Howell being in the last year of his rookie contract, and therefore having a developmental QB2 on a rookie contract for the next four years.
I also appreciate that the inner workings of Darnold’s contract really makes it seem more like a two year “prove it” sorta deal with team friendly outs for Seattle. To me, it makes the deal all the more better for the team, and in a sense, the player, as well.
If Darnold struggles to match his breakout performance of 2024, Seattle has the ability to move on from him quickly over the next season, or two. If he plays really well in their Klint Kubiak scheme, he will be in position during the 2027 offseason to negotiate a bigger long term contract to stick around. Within the framework of his contract with Seattle, the Seahawks have protected themselves, and Sam Darnold has waged a good bet on himself working out here. Every Seahawk fan should like that.
Essentially, in two years time, Seattle will know if Sam Darnold is, or is not their long term franchise quarterback. This is why I am absolutely not down for Seattle burning their first round pick on a quarterback such as Tyler Shough, or even Jaxson Dart later this April. If they are both available at pick 18, let them become the prizes of other teams afterwards.
I think there are most likely going to be strong options for them in the first round to improve their offensive line (finally), or further strengthen their defensive line. I could also get down with Seattle taking a crack at a defensive back, or a tight end if one of Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, or Mason Taylor is sitting there.
Many fans would hate this, but I could even be convinced that taking a receiver in round one makes sense, if my arm is twisted enough, and local kid Emeka Egbuka is there, who grew up in Tacoma being a huge Seahawks fan. Egkuka is a lot like Jaxon Smith Njigba, but I can be convinced that it isn’t a bad thing for Seattle to nab him up, and groom him behind veteran Cooper Kupp. Inject a guy like him onto this roster, and suddenly the narrative that Darnold won’t have as good of a receiving corp to throw to as he did in Minnie shrinks dramatically.
I likely wouldn’t love seeing Seattle take a receiver, tight end, or DB at 18 overall if a good offensive line prospect was available, but if the guy is really special, I could wrap my head around it. I would just have a much harder time wrapping my head around a quarterback, if that proved the case.
If that pick does become quarterback Tyler Shough, as NFL draft insider Tony Pauline has recently sorta suggested, it would be a tough pill for me to swallow. It would leave me with the feeling like Seattle would have way overcorrected at quarterback to an unnecessary degree, and I like Shough for reasons already mentioned. In round three, I would enjoy seeing Seattle taking a swing at him, if he was still there, but not round one, or even really, round two, and here is why.
Shough has a lot of college experience starting because he has been injured so many times that he has bounced around different programs looking for fresh starts. To a degree, it has been a blessing to him because he has played in numerous systems, has grown as a passer, and a person, and has created a pretty good floor as a quarterback draft prospect for himself. He will, however, turn 26 years old in the Fall, and is therefore, just about two years younger than Darnold, and that, matched with his injury history, makes him less appealing to me as a prospect.
He would be the perfect player to land with Pittsburgh with a chance to start right away, and get his clock going as a rookie. I think Cleveland would also be a great spot for him with a chance for the team to move off of the horrendous Deshaun Watson situation. The Jets certainly make similar sense with Justin Fields not being a certainty to succeed. Tennessee would be a very obvious landing spot with a chance for him to openly compete with Will Levis.
I could even argue that going to the Rams, where they probably have Stafford going year to year now, would make sense. Ditto with the Giants and Russell Wilson being on a one year deal, or even to the Raiders with Geno Smith.
For Shough, I think either a situation where he can immediately start as a rookie, or develop behind an older QB1 who probably only has a couple of years left makes a bunch of sense. If Seattle still had Geno Smith here, I could get behind taking Shough earlier, or any other of these quarterbacks getting hyped up a bit.
Shough going to Seattle at 18, though, after signing Darnold? Man, I wouldn’t get that.
If Seattle were to take Shough with their first round pick, they would almost certainly feel the pressure to move off of Darnold without seeing the experiment with him through. Due to his age, the clock for getting Shough in the driver’s seat as QB1 for Seattle would probably be pressured to be sped up, as he will be 30 years old by the time he would be negotiating his second contract.
And if they did decide to move off of Darnold early in favor of developing a 26 year old quarterback that they invested a first round pick on, and Shough struggles and or gets injured (as he often did in college).. Jeeze Louise.. when what does Seattle have potentially have at quarterback?
It would potentially be a bloody mess that would see the whole front office fired, and maybe the coaching staff, as well. Personally, I would like to avoid that scenario from happening because that sounds way too much like the New York Jets over the past 15 years.
Now, if he ends up playing like Josh Allen all of that is moot, but how likely is that going to be?
My guess is not that likely, and his ceiling will probably be, well.. Sam Darnold-esque with maybe a greater likelihood of getting injured a fair amount more. That doesn’t sound like someone I want to see Seattle spend a first round pick on when they already have Darnold on the roster for the next three years, or longer, if all goes well.
Now, if he is sitting at pick 82 or 92, and Seattle wanted to add him, then I would be way more warm to it. That would be much more palatable.
If he lasted that long, then it would signal that the league recognized his injury concerns and had questions about his true ceiling. Seattle could take advantage of an older college quarterback still being available who might have a decent floor, and enough ability to push Darnold early.
If he develops strongly, and quickly, Seattle would have flexibility to move away from Darnold. If Darnold plays well enough to not really make of a competition between the two, then Seattle has a decent and affordable backup option on their roster for the next four seasons. Either scenario would be win/win for Seattle, and Seattle will have bolstered their roster by taking players at other positions earlier.
Honestly, this might be the reason Seattle is taking a good long look at Shough. They might not be considering him in the first round, but should he last into round three, he might become an interesting option once offensive line, and a few other positions are addressed. Having him behind Darnold becomes additional security at the most important position at a more palatable cost.
But first round quarterback for Seattle this year?
Nah, I am not feeling that.
Not in an offseason when the biggest need on this team clearly has been improving the offensive line, and Seattle has done extremely little in free agency to add talent to it. I can accept this reality of lack of veteran infusion to the offensive line if Seattle sees numerous players in this draft that they are prepared to add early, starting in round one. Ideally, I would want to see an offensive lineman taken in round one, and another one taken in round two.
North Dakota State guard/center Grey Zabel is the guy I am all in on due to his physical profile and fit for their zone blocking system, but there are others who I equally could get behind at pick 18. I wouldn’t hate it if they selected Ohio State guard Donavan Jackson. I also wouldn’t be mad if it was Oregon tackle/guard Josh Conerly Junior, either (other local Seattle kid, FYI).
Honestly, I wouldn’t hate it if their first three picks of the draft (picks 18, 50, and 52) were all offensive linemen, given the needs of improvement to this area being that extreme. It likely won’t happen, but I wouldn’t be upset if it did.
So, while it is fun to think about seeing Seattle drafting a quarterback high because it would infuse fans with something daydream about, especially those skeptical about Darnold, I don’t think this is the draft to do it. I don’t think any of these quarterbacks are sure things be quality NFL starters.
I think it is all fingers crossed projection with Cam Ward, Shedeur Sanders, Dart, Howard, and Shough will become quality NFL QBs. If any of these guys were in last year’s draft where six quarterbacks were drafted in the first twelve picks of the draft, they all would have likely been second or third round picks, at best. Let other teams needier at quarterback take swings on them.
Go get Grey Zabel, or someone else close enough to his talent level on the offensive line. Commit to saying what you want to be; a tough physical team that nobody wants to play. Do not pass over a player who will provide you this opportunity up front for a quarterback prospect who may not ever be able to beat out Sam Darnold at QB1 spot further down the line. Don’t do this.
Ride this through with Darnold over the next two years, and see what you have with him first. If it doesn’t work out, then consider taking a quarterback high. You might be better positioned for it in a future draft with a stronger quarterback class than this one.
Trust me on this. This is not the draft to take a quarterback high. At all. Not for the Seattle Seahawks, anyways.
With two weeks of NFL free agency now in the books, I bet there are Twelves scratching their heads over the state of the Seattle Seahawk offensive line, leaving bloody scabs of frustration for concerned loved ones to see. I will be the first to admit that I’m surprised by the lack of movement at guard and center, given the needs.
The NFL offseason is fleeting. A week and a half ago, the Seattle Seahawks were free agency darlings in the eyes of SI journalist Albert Breer for the way they moved off of Geno Smith for Sam Darnold and essentially a third round pick. Fast forward to now, we have various analysts now calling them big time losers of the offseason because they signed Darnold and haven’t made big free agent moves to upgrade the offensive line for him.
“What is the plan in Seattle?”
“It seems like the Seahawks have no plan.”
Indeed. From an outsider perspective, it’s a fair take. For those close to the team, however, there is a nuanced perspective national media folks won’t spend time discussing. Nuance does not great headlines.
I don’t believe that the Seattle front office is the clueless mess that skeptics would have it. First of all, I didn’t think this year’s free agent crop of offensive lineman was that great. The only player I was really hoping for was former Altanta center Drew Dalman who quickly signed a massive contract with Chicago. Secondly, I think it is worth reminding frustrated fans that the draft appears to be promising for interior offensive linemen.
At the Senior Bowl, it was noted by many how intently GM John Schneider was studying offensive line drills. He was watching these guys like a hawk (intended pun). This should have been a big tell for what Seattle’s plan would be to address the offensive line this offseason.
With now two weeks into free agency and no real move to be made on the offensive line outside of adding a swing tackle, I am beginning to let go of expectations of what I thought this team would do, and I am embracing their process. There are talented players in this draft class who are going to fill needs on Seattle’s offensive line, and I am ready for them to come in.
When reality smacks you across the face, it is time to let go of expectations that you have held onto, and just accept what is. This ability to let go is beneficial for survival, and has been passed down to us through generations of strife.
When our forefathers were picking berries down by a riverbank, and a gigantic saber cat jumped out of the brush, grabbed one of their children, and ran off with it for an easy snack, our forefathers didn’t just stop producing more kids. Instead, they just got smarter about where to bring them around.
So, while I would have imagined that Seattle would have made former Viking center Garrett Bradbury their new center here, following Sam Darnold to the 206, I had to quickly pivot off of that. Likewise, when I also would have thought that Teven Jenkins possibly would have been signed last week to become the new starting left guard.
Neither of these moves happened. Bradbury was never brought in, and it is worth noting that Seahawk center Olu Oluwatimi has a similar 2004 PFF grade to his. Jenkins did visit, but left Seattle without a contract, and quickly signed elsewhere. It is obvious that Seattle was not as high on these players as many Seahawk fans had been, and I think the answer to this is now obvious.
Bradbury never lived up to the hype of his first round status in Minnesota, and Jenkins has a problematic injury history, and a questionable desire to play through pain. As desperate as we can be wanting to see Seattle make free agents moves to improve the offensive line, I don’t think we should hold it against them that they punted on either of these guys.
Seattle obviously sees prospects in this draft that they could land, and develop as long term answers rather than make spendy moves on free agents whose previous teams felt ready to move on from. Alternatively, it is also very possible that their new offensive coaches honestly like the potential of young players recently drafted, and they want to further develop them as starters.
Believe it or not, Anthony Bradford was actually one of the better zone run blocking guards in football last year, per Pro Football Focus. The problem was that with former coordinator Ryan Grubb, Seattle did not run the ball nearly enough, and he was not consistent enough as a pass blocker. If the new offensive line coaches can further unlock the potential of Bradford, he has the size and athletic profile to be a dominating run blocking guard in this league.
Additionally, last year’s third round pick Christian Haynes was one of the best pure zone blocking guards in all of college football in 2023, but he was little used by Grubb, and once Bradford was lost for the season after eleven games, he was leap frogged by six round pick Sataoa Laumea, who coaches could like, as well. There is a perception around the team that Grubb mishandled the development of Haynes, and this could be true. The interesting thing about Haynes is that he has a body type that could make for an intriguing candidate at center, if Seattle takes a guard early in the draft, and views Bradford as a starter at guard, as well.
But why am I bringing up all this zone blocking jargon, you ask? Well, Seattle is adopting a scheme that is largely reliant on zone blocking, and with that offensive linemen who are really good at getting to second level defenders, and creating elaborate running lanes for running backs are requirements to making the scheme go.
What does this mean most likely for Seattle and the offensive line moving forward this year?
They added Josh Jones as a veteran swing tackle, and I suspect that they will make one more modest veteran move on the offensive line prior to the draft that is now a month away. Like Jones, it will likely not be a move that gets many Twelves hopeful, but I suspect that the real big splash for the offensive line will happen in this draft, likely in round one or round two.
It is recently been estimated that there are 16 interior offensive line prospects in this draft that will be viewed as NFL starters. That’s a healthy number.
Some of them are college tackles who will convert to guards in the pros, and some might even convert to center. Dennison and Benton have long proven track records as NFL offensive line coaches who have converted college tackles into production interior offensive linemen.
It is very safe to say that in a month’s time, at least one of these 16 mastodons is going to be a Seattle Seahawk. It is possible that with Bradford and Haynes on this roster, that player will be our new starting center. It is also possible that the coaches will look to convert Haynes to center to make way for a talented rookie to play guard, as he has a good body type for the position.
Does this feel risky? Yes. Absolutely it does, but almost every move that Seattle has done this offseason has been a big calculated risk.
It was risky moving on from Geno Smith in favor of Sam Darnold, who even though I believe might prove to be an upgrade, there is no guarantee of that panning out.
Likewise, even though Cooper Kupp is likely a better scheme fit for Seattle than DK Metcalf likely would have been, there is no guarantee he stays healthy enough, and therefore it is a huge risk for Seattle to trade off DK only to pivot to Kupp. Because of this, I fully expect Seattle to draft a receiver at some point within the first two days of the draft.
I think there is even a modest risk that Seattle has signed 31 year old DeMarcus Lawrence to a big three year contract. He’s older, coming off of a significant injury last year. While I am hopeful that Mike Macdonald will make good use out of him, there is no guarantee that his body won’t start to further break down given his violent style of play.
What I like about all of these moves is that the Seattle front office has realized that annually treading water at 9 or 10 wins a season is not likely going to bring them any closer to another Super Bowl ring, and they are now finally willing to take some educated risks. If Sam Darnold does prove to be a good system fit here, as I think he will, then Seattle has effectively solved its longer termed quarterback question, and if not, then they can look to the draft in a future year. If the totality of Cooper Kupp and a promising rookie receiver is a greater sum than DK Metcalf for this scheme at receiver, then Seattle will have made a brilliant move to trade him rather than overspend to keep his unhappy butt on the roster.
Likewise, if Seattle does indeed draft North Dakota State offensive lineman Grey Zabel, and he converts to a pro bowl center for Seattle for the next ten years, then it would be a brilliant stroke from the front office to not settle on a mediocre veteran center like Garrett Bradbury just because of his familiarity with Sam Darnold. Raise your hand, if you are a Seahawk fan who would love to see the center position finally secured by a quality player for the next decade of Seahawk football.
This is the biggest thing to consider now as a Seahawks fan. Wouldn’t it be more prudent to invest in young talent in a good draft for interior offensive linemen than overspend for mid level players in the free agency? My answer to this is very much a resounding yes.
You made the switch from Ryan Grubb to Klint Kubiak because you recognized that the Kubiak system would be better for your team. Kubiak brought with him top notch NFL offensive line coaches who master at coaching a zone blocking scheme, and you have a couple year guards on the roster who have shown to be good zone blockers. This draft is loaded with college players who were good in zone blocking schemes.
It appears that John Schneider is prepared to trust these coaches to get the most out of young players. It is not the safest thing to do. It does not make me feel as comfortable as I want to be as a Seahawks fan. It is, however, probably the smartest thing to do given the mediocrity of the free agent market for guard and center, and the promising nature of this draft class.
This draft is not thought to be strong at quarterback, and Seattle quickly pivoted to Sam Darnold when they felt they would not reach a deal with Geno Smith. This draft is also not thought to be greatly rich at receiver, either, and that is why I think we have seen moves to add Kupp, Marquise Valdez Scantling, and now River Cracraft.
This is a promising draft for guards and it has some players who could convert to center. This is a great draft for defensive tackle, running back, and tight end.
This is a good draft for Seattle to get meat and potato players on both sides of the ball. If you want to play stout defense, and run the ball, control clock, play connected as a team, then I think Seattle is well positioned with five picks in the top 92 to add to the line of scrimmage, and around out the roster for this team to better play the style of ball that Macdonald would have it.
Seattle could even theoretically draft a special player at 18 in this draft who doesn’t play on the offensive line, and still find solutions for their line in the second and third rounds. It would make me incredibly nervous if they did this, but there are a couple tight ends who will be drafted in the top frame of this draft who are talented enough that if one fell into the lap of Seattle at 18, it might be too difficult to resist the urge of selecting. If Seattle took one of these guys, I would be pretty on board with that, and then I would keep my fingers crossed that they could grab a couple good offensive linemen in round two.
What I suspect is most likely, though, is that John Schneider does the very conventional thing and takes the best offensive lineman on their board at 18, or a little bit later in the first round after a bit of a trade back, and then he takes another offensive lineman on day two. History supports this likelihood.
In 2022, after they traded Russell Wilson, Seattle was very thin at offensive tackle. While some wanted them to take a swing on a quarterback in the weak quarterback draft class, they conventionally took the best left tackle on their board in Charles Cross, and then they took right tackle Abe Lucas in early round three. Cross was not widely viewed as a top ten draft prospect but they stayed safe, and took him at 10 overall, anyways. This proved to be a pretty decent payoff, and they found decent value with Lucas later on.
It feels very logical that John Schneider should look to replicate this with the interior of Seattle’s offensive line this April. I can see a very vivid scenario where Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart is sitting at pick 18, and Seattle choses an offensive line over a quarterback who will have a lot of Twelves clamoring for him like they did with Malik Willis four years ago when Seattle took Cross, instead.
Grey Zabel is going to be a guy who is going to be talked about a lot for Seattle in the coming weeks. He is a tall, strong, athletic zone blocker who plays with a lot of attitude and toughness, and is reportedly a very strong leader. He took a series of reps at the Senior Bowl at center, and snapped the ball well. Some think he has the profile to be a solid guard in this league, but could ultimately be a top tier starting center down the line. I think there is an extreme possibility that Seattle would draft him at 18, but I also think it is very possible that he is taken before Seattle’s pick.
If this proves the case, and Zabel won’t be available to them, that could compel Seattle to trade down a bit and still take a guard, and then double dip at guard again on day two, and then consider moving Christian Haynes to center. It wouldn’t get a lot of Seahawk fans excited, but with the high number of offensive tackles in this draft that could convert well to guard, plus guys who were quality guards in college last year like Ohio State’s Donovan Jackson, Georgia’s Tate Ratledge, and Alabama’s Tyler Booker, a Haynes move to center suddenly becomes more interesting in an open competition with Olu Oluwatimi, if Seattle grabs a couple of these fellas.
There are a couple other convert to center candidates in this draft, as well, that Seattle could consider. Purdue offensive lineman Marcus Mbow has a similar projection to convert to center as Zabel, based on his physical traits that suit the position. Some think that West Virginia’s Wyatt Milum could be suited for the spot, as well.
Outside of these two other guys, though, this draft is considered very thin at center in terms of who were actually playing the spot in college last year. Georgia center Jared Wilson is the only player who is thought to have strong starter potential in this draft. That is why guys like Zabel and probably Mbow are going to be elevated based on projection.
This is why Zabel is going to continue being a very talked about player for Seattle at 18. Based on the current needs of the team, he might be a top player on their board at this point. Their ideal scenario might be being able to take him at 18, and then keeping their fingers crossed that one of Jackson, Booker, Ratledge, or Oregon’s Josh Conley Jr falls in their lap in round two.
If they are fortunate to land Zabel and there is a run on top guard prospects to the point where none of them land to them in round two, then that is where they might go different directions much like they did in free agency, and they trust their coaches to further develop Haynes and Bradford as guards. Is this ideal? Probably not, but objectively speaking, it is a fall back that could work out, or at least work better for them in the 2025 season.
It is already noted that Bradford and Haynes have both shown good abilities as run blockers in a zone scheme. The truth of the matter for Seattle is that with Kubiak replacing Ryan Grubb, Seattle is venturing back to their 2012-2014 DNA of predominantly being a running team with play action passing being a complimentary feature. If they add Zabel inside, that could be enough to further uncork the potential of Ken Walker and Zach Charbonnet and it further mitigate the limited pass blocking traits of a guy like Bradford, and who knows, perhaps Benton and Dennison are able to develop Bradford further as a pass blocker. This is possible.
In their ideal world, I feel like this coaching staff would probably love to see Sam Darnold throw on average about 25 times a game, and the bulk of that on play action passes where he has shown to be very good at it. This is the strength of their new quarterback, and he might be perfectly fine staying in this game managerial lane while guiding Seattle to wins. At this point in his career, he is probably just looking for stability, and a chance to win as a starter however which ways those wins come. If this is the case, that is not a terrible thing, at all, for Seattle, or for him.
I suspect that this is their plan. They want a good young enough game managerial situation at quarterback. They want to win with defense, play good special teams, and close out the circle by running the football, killing clock, and making explosive plays off of play action.
Ironically, I think they really do want to get back to Pete Carroll football in many, many ways.
With a full week for NFL free agency in the books for the league, I thought it would be good to do a little reflections on how this past week went for the Seattle Seahawks. I wrote a fairly lengthy reaction to the Seahawks signing Sam Darnold as a replacement for Geno Smith, but after that, I sorta wanted to go dark for the rest of the week to see what else unfolds, and then let it breathe. Here are some of my overriding thoughts as I have digested what was one of the most wildly active weeks I can remember out of any start to free agency for the Seattle Seahawks.
After trading cutting Tyler Lockett, and trading away Geno Smith, and DK Metcalf, I feel like there was an immediate reaction from fans and media members such as Mina Kimes that proclaimed John Schneider was steering Seattle into a seemingly unnecessary rebuild after a respectable 10-7 season. I am not here to say that Kimes and others are overly dramatic in response, but I could not disagree with this take more.
I don’t think Tyler Lockett was ever going to be a great fit for the Kubiak scheme that Seattle is adopting, at all. I had some mild concerns about Seattle signing Geno to another big time contract given his age, and whether he has peaked out as a player. Additionally, if I am being perfectly honest, while I have always been a big DK supporter, I was never a hundred percent sure if his inconsistencies as a route runner was going to fit for this thing, either.
I felt certain that Tyler was going to be gone, but I also wondered if Seattle would be aggressively move off of the other two, as well. Sounds like they wanted to keep DK, and tried to work it out with him, but the sudden move away from Geno feels much cloudier, at best.
I suspect that once they realized how affordable Sam Darnold was going to be, the more incentivized they were to trade away Geno Smith. If you just take emotions out of the equation, it makes a lot of sense from a basic football perspective. If you are moving into a new offensive scheme with a new OC, would it not make sense to move towards a quarterback who has a deeper background in the scheme, success in the scheme, and relationship with the OC, especially if he is seven years younger than the QB you have in house? I believe it does.
So while I appreciate how smart of a football mind Kimes is, I do not see this as any sort of wave the white flag, tear it down, rebuild project for Seattle this year, at least by their thinking. I think they are in the midst of a major retooling, bringing in players who they see as better fits, and I am patient to see how it will look after the draft in April before fully judging too much, one way or the other.
The overriding theme I keep saying with each of these signings is “system fit.” I anticipate we will see maybe a couple more acquisitions next week where “system fit” is going to be the major descriptor for them.
Here are my grades on each signing, thus far.
Quarterback Sam Darnold: A+
If you are not the same Sam Darnold enthusiast that I am, I will not hold it against you. For me, I believe Darnold could prove to be a quality upgrade over Geno Smith, and I have confidence in this belief.
If you want to gleam valuable insight into how well an NFL player is, I invite you not to rely solely on an advanced metric chart that some Seahawk fan shares on social media, or listen to a content creating Seahawk YouTuber. Instead, give a good long listen to whatever NFL Films analyst Greg Cosell has to say. Greg Cosell pours over every play of each NFL player with key insight to what NFL coaches value and look for in a given play. He is very on board with Sam Darnold coming to Seattle. In fact, he views him being a better fit for the Kubiak offense than Geno Smith.
A lot is now being made of the real numbers coming out on Darnold’s three year contract with Seattle. It is obviously very team friendly, but I would be careful to label it as a one year contract with team outs in 2026 and 2027, and expect that Seattle will be drafting his replacement in April. Seattle has done similar contracts like this in the past with Geno Smith, and even Russell Wilson. Let’s face it, if Darnold plays well, and Seattle does well, he will likely stay through this three year span, and he will very likely sign a bigger extension by the 2027 offseason.
Seattle got younger at quarterback, possibly better at quarterback at a price that is perfectly team friendly, and they acquired a third round pick in exchange for Geno Smith. This is a big time win, and I have a sneaking suspicion that Darnold will prove to be better here than some realize. If I am wrong on this, and he stinks, well then, Seattle can get out of this deal, and will most likely be better positioned next year to select a quarterback in a draft class that is thought to be much stronger at the position.
I see no bad angle at taking this shot with Darnold this year, though. I am excited to see what happens, and this all feels very win/win for the team, and potentially the player, as well.
Offensive Tackle Josh Jones: C+
Quietly nestled under in the huge Sam Darnold news last Monday was the news that Seattle agreed to terms with Baltimore offensive tackle Josh Jones on a one year contract to be the swing tackle for Charles Cross and Abe Lucas. For me, he’s a valuable signing given the health history of Lucas, and he is something rare for a Seattle signing. He is known as a better pass blocker than a run blocker. This is a decent move, if not a spectacular one, and it is good to see this team appreciate a more veteran presence at this spot than being forced to trust a rookie. They need to make a much bigger splash on the offensive line in this veteran market than this, though, and hopefully that move is around the corner this week.
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling: B-
MVS is essentially a poor man’s version of DK Metcalf, and with DK gone, Seattle needed someone reliable who can take the top off of a defense. This is MVS’s game, and he comes to Seattle familiar with Klint Kubiak and his scheme. I like this signing because of the very obvious need. They need skill players who know what to do in this scheme and can be relied on to start and/or add knowledgable depth.
It would be tough to argue that MVS is an upgrade over Tyler Lockett because Lockett is a significantly more accomplished receiver, but it is possible that MVS is a better fit for this scheme. He also comes to Seattle with a Super Bowl ring from his time with the Chiefs, and in that, could offer valuable leadership in a receiver room that will now need it.
DE DeMarcus Lawrence: A-
I will be honest, when the news broke that Seattle signed this guy to a big three year contract, I flipped out with excitement. It was a move that I wanted to see this team make because of the type of player he is, and the connection he has to defensive coordinate Aden Durde from their Dallas days together. I did not think Seattle would go here, though, and therefore, wasn’t expecting this.
Obviously, I am not concerned much about D Law’s age, nor am I concerned about the injury he sustained last year. For me, he is a significantly better system fit at rush end than Dre’Mont Jones was, and he is a stellar run stopper as well as being a solid pass rusher.
Seattle’s defense needs his level of badass on the edge. They have some badass dudes inside at DT, but D Law rounds the front four out as a rush end. Seattle’s improving defense likely got stronger with this move. He might not be the pass rusher he was a few years ago, but Macdonald has a pretty solid track record with getting good production out of older defensive linemen. Very worthy risk to take with this guy even if age and his injury from last year are a bit of a concern.
WR Cooper Kupp: A
The only thing that prevents this from being an A+ signing for me is his injury history the last few years. I adore this signing, though. I rooted hard for it to happen the second Seattle traded away DK Metcalf.
By every metric and film tape, Cooper Kupp is, unquestionably, a better overall fit for the Kubiak scheme than DK Metcalf would likely be, even if his ability to get separation has diminished. That is not to say that DK couldn’t have evolved, and excelled greatly in it. It just means that Kupp is, right now, better equipped to do all the right things that Kubiak will require at reciever, and it’s a cherry on top that he comes to Seattle at half the financial cost of that it would have been to extend DK.
He will come in with a superb understanding of the outside stretch zone offense. He is a Super Bowl MVP, and that is going to give him a ton of status on this youthful roster. Young players will look up to him, and likely follow his example.
So many of his intangibles go beyond the field of play. They will be there at practice, and on the sidelines, and in the meeting rooms.
He will also be extremely motivated to play well here, and prove the Rams wrong. He did not return to his home state to be second class in the NFC West. He came home to play in front of friends and family, to stick it to the Rams twice a year, and to win the division, and bring another Super Bowl victory to his home team. If he accomplishes this feat, his legacy will be as big here as it is in Southern California. I suspect he will be highly driven to accomplish this for himself, and his family who are diehard Seattle Seahawk fans.
No matter how much Jaxon Smith Njigba is becoming an ascending talent in Seattle, Cooper Kupp will be a valuable featured player in this offense. He will know the routes, the concepts, he will understand the finite spacing, the run blocking nuances, and he will most likely provide Sam Darnold a very reliable outlet against zone defenses. He will be a superb mentor to JSN, and whoever else Seattle might grab in this year’s draft.
While it is likely that he will miss a game here and there, his overall value to this team will most likely greatly outweigh injury concerns. Just draft someone to groom behind him. Like Darnold, there is no risk to bringing him in, and there is a very real chance of this paying off big time. I love this move so much.
Cornerback Shemar Jean-Charles: D+
Seattle needs cornerback depth, and they don’t have much beyond Josh Jobe backing up Riq Woolen and Devon Witherspoon. As much as an optimist as I am, I find it hard to get excited about this addition. SJC has some starting experience in the league, but the way he has bounced around on and off teams and practice squads gives an impression that this is purely a depth move. I wouldn’t be surprised if cornerback becomes a bigger target for the team in this draft with Woolen heading into a contract year, and I also wouldn’t be surprised if they add another vet. We shall see.
Thoughts moving into the second week of free agency
This is the week where I super duper want to see the Seahawks make a significant addition (or two) on the offensive line. Josh Jones might be a really nice depth player capable of playing multiple positions at the offensive line, but I see a glaring need at left guard, and center possibly even more.
Former Bears left guard Teven Jenkins is scheduled to meet with Seattle on Monday. This is encouraging. He is a big athlete guard who would be a good fit for their zone blocking scheme. He’s at a good age being only 26 years old. He has had a bit of an injury history, though, and that is why Chicago chose to move on from him.
If Jenkins reaches a two or three year deal with Seattle, that would tell me that things went really well with him during the meet, and they are willing to live with his injury risks. If they sign him to a one year contract or move on without an offer, that means that selecting a guard in the early stages of the draft in April will be inevitable. It is that simple. This visit will tell us a lot about where they are going with the offensive line, one way, or another.
The move that I would most likely see Seattle do with the offensive line this week isn’t at guard, though, it’s at center. Klint Kubiak was very outward after his hiring that he would like to see a smart, experienced, capable player come in and take over his center spot.
In his scheme, the center is arguably the most important player on the line outside of left tackle. That is the guy who takes pressure off the quarterback calling out the pass protection adjustments. Trusting a rookie to do this in 2025 would be a way bigger roll of the dice than replacing Geno Smith with Sam Darnold, in my view. Therefore, I would like to see Seattle go get Sam’s center in Minnesota who is now available for a trade after the Vikings signed Ryan Kelly.
Go get Garrett Bradbury. Seattle Sports personality Brock Huard went on air late last week pushing for this move, and he made sense in his reasoning. Darnold and Bradbury have a solid chemistry with each other. That QB/Center chemistry takes time to build. While Bradbury might be an average starting center, and that’s the reason why Minnesota shifted to Kelly, he would be a significant upgrade to what Seattle has rostered here. Not only is he familiar with the quarterback, he is also very familiar with the zone blocking scheme.
Therefore, for these reasons, I put a higher value on bringing Bradbury in than I do Teven Jenkins. A quality rookie can step into left guard and net positive results in his first year. Center is a position in this scheme that would likely be much harder for a rookie to immediately take over, and expect good results.
If Seattle cannot swing a deal for Bradbury through trade or free agency if he is released, there is a very short list of other center options on the free agent market that I hope they consider. Here are my alternative choices.
Former Raider Andre James is at a good age (26 years old), and was thought of in recent years as being one of the better developing young centers in the game. Vegas drafted a center in the first round last year and will be shifting towards him. I prefer Bradbury given his chemistry with Darnold, but I can be convinced that James is an equal, if not better option.
Trystan Colon is another young option possibly worth taking a long look at. He started his career out in Baltimore as an undrafted free agent, but found himself a few years later starting in Arizona. He has guard and center starting experience, and while this would not likely be an option that would excite Seattle fans, he might have some upside left, and prove serviceable. His PFF grades in 2024 were very good after being forced into starting at right guard for injured Will Hernandez.. so good that it is not unreasonable to think he could be an option at guard, as well.
Former Patriots center David Andrews has found himself available on the free agent market after recently being released. He is 32 years old, and is coming off of a serious injury. I would not hate this signing, but I would have a difficult time not seeing it as being anything other than another short term fix, which I am getting really tired of seeing at center for this team. If they were to opt for him, my hope would be that they would see a long term solution in the draft that he would be the hedge for.
The only other free agent moves that I would really like to see John Schneider do is to go a more significant addition at corner, bring in a quality option at fullback, maybe one more bigger defensive end type to fill the role that Roy Robertson-Harris played last year, and to add another safety. It is very possible that some of these moves will be filled in the draft, but here are a few veteran names that I like at each of these spots.
This will probably not happen, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Seattle taking a swing at corner Assante Samuel Junior. He’s young and has a strong NFL pedigree. While his PFF grades aren’t great, they aren’t all together terrible, either. If he can be convinced to come into Seattle on a short term contract, I think that could be a quality signing, but I don’t think Seattle needs to splurge on anything long term with him. It would be a measured gamble on something that could pay off nicely for them in 2025.
Kansas City DE Charles Omenihu has the size and length to be an upgrade of RRH, and is only 27 years old. Mike Macdonald’s hybrid defense has roots in what Steve Spagnuolo does in KC, so Omenihu would seemingly come in with knowledge of how to play here. There are promising options in the draft to fill this role, but this guy would be an interesting veteran option.
Colts safety Julian Blackmon is only 26 years old, and has strong PFF coverage grades in 2024. His run defense leaves you wanting, but it is reasonable to think that aspect of his game can be coached up. I wouldn’t hate it if Seattle brought him in on a two year contract to mix in with Julian Love and Coby Bryant.
I really wanted Seattle to make a run at Kyle Juszcyk when he was released by San Francisco, and it was a bit deflating for me to see him ultimately return there on a new deal. Adding him with Cooper Kupp would have been really exciting in terms of scheme fit, and poaching from NFC West rivals. However, that did not happen. Therefore, here are a couple options to pivot towards.
The Saints have not released Taysom Hill as many expected them to do. He might be too valuable for them to let go, but if he was made available, he would be a player I would absolutely want to see Seattle pounce on and use him in a fullback/tight end role.
Alternative to Taysom, I see no harm in them bringing in fullback Adam Prentice who played for Kubiak last year in NOLA, as well. He offers little in terms of a runner or receiver, but is a well rounded blocker who knows this scheme.
Alternative to these two guys, I do wonder if Seattle can get creative at fullback be either converting a tight end to the position, or a running back. Thinking super outside of the box, with this draft being super rich at running back this year, would it be crazy to consider converting Zach Charbonnet to a fullback role where his running and natural pass catching traits can serve as a very unique threat on the field? He would have to be very open to it, if he believes the move would provide him a uniquely advantageous playmaking role, but I feel it is a thought worth considering, especially if a very good running back can be had in the middle rounds of this draft like things are projecting a bit.
An in house alternative to Zach making this shift could be tight end Brady Russell being converted to fullback. He is well sized for the role, and would offer a playmaking outlet at receiver when they function in two receiver two back sets.
At any rate, these are my current thoughts about the team. I would generally give the first week of free agency a solid B grade, overall. I would have liked to have seen a splash move on the offensive as much as the any Seattle fan, but the bold move to Darnold has me more excited than some would have it. I think the Kupp and D Law moves were excellent gambles, as well.
I need to see them make a stronger push towards adding proven veteran talents, though. I know that at this stage of free agency, most players out there are not perfect answers, but Seattle’s offensive line was so inexperienced and problematic last year that just getting a couple average-to-slightly-above-average starters would likely be a big improvement.
Right now, I need to see a solid option at center added more than anything else. Go get me a center, please.
My apologies if you think the title of this article doesn’t offer enough respect towards Geno Smith, and his time quarterbacking for the Seahawks. I do not mean this piece as a disrespect towards him, at all.
In fact, I deeply appreciate what Geno did carrying on for Russell Wilson after Seattle made that other shocking trade away of their other starting quarterback. In that opening season match against Denver, he absolutely won me over as a fan, and I have stayed pretty loyal towards him defending him countless times against fans who, for whatever reason, felt he was a horrible quarterback (he wasn’t, not even close).
During the 2022, when he was torching up defenses for a month or so, I had so many visions of grandeur that Seattle had found their Rich Gannon, a long time NFL journeyman quarterback who found his game late, and played hot for a number of years. I was happy to see him extended on an affordable three year contract, and while his play in 2023 and 2024 didn’t totally match his performance of 2022, I still thought he played reasonably well enough to stay the starter here.
But not all fans have thought as warmly about Geno Smith as I have. Some have been downright horrible towards him, and I felt this growing significantly last season.
I was at four home games last season, Seattle lost all four, and in my sections, I saw vitriol directed towards Geno Smith unlike anything I have ever seen against Russ on a bad Sunday, Hasselbeck, Rick Mirer, or even Dave Krieg. With each game, it felt like it got worse.
Now, I will be the first to admit that I didn’t love his red zone interceptions that happened this year. Honestly, I think he cost us the game against the Rams, and the game against the Vikings with Sam Darnold (more on him in a minute), and both of those were very winnable matches for Seattle. It was painful walking out of Lumen Field after both games knowing that we could have pulled them off, but didn’t, and Geno had played a big part in those losses.
But I also know that Geno Smith was not helped much by coordinator at the time Ryan Grubb. Way too often, Geno was left looking way downfield on third and manageable plays with no outlet receiver to dump off to against pressure sent. Honestly, the Grubb offense felt like a college offense going against pro defenses. It was full of half field reads, it lacked desired creativity, and consistency. Geno might have thrown a lot of red zone picks, but I don’t think Grubb knew how to effectively play call against NFL red zone defenses, either, and that is why he was quickly fired at the end of the season.
On one level, it is a shame that we won’t see Geno Smith in this new Klint Kubiak offense. I think he likely would have fit it really well. Kubiak lives off of play action passing, and Geno is a very gifted play action passer. For me, it is a bit of a bummer we didn’t get to see him bounce back here in 2025 with a better season.
But I get the business of the NFL, I really do. I think most fans don’t realize how difficult it is to be a successful NFL GM. You have 53 players you have to fill out a roster with in a league that plays 17 regular season games, and it almost always is a war of attrition each year through the coarse of these long seasons. Professional football is a hyper violent sport, and the teams who make the playoffs either catch enough breaks with avoiding a lot of injuries, or they are just simply deep enough throughout their roster construction to overcome them. A good GM has got to see the bigger picture every single day.
Geno Smith has been a good, mostly reliable starting quarterback that past few years. If he was 28 years old, I would say “by all means, John Schneider, pay him what he wants.”
But Geno is about to turn 35 years old in October, and paying him $45 million a year through 2028 when he would be 38 years old just feels way too risky and rich for my blood. Apparently, it did for John Schneider, as well.
Also, if Geno Smith was more universally loved by the fans of this team, I would probably feel very differently about this trade, but I know he is not universally adored. I think the fanbase grew to be really split down the middle with him in 2024, and I think another big extension of Geno would have been a really hard sell on about half of the fanbase.
I was at the last game the Seahawks played in 2024 at home, I was up pretty close to the Seahawk bench, and I watched Geno get into a yelling match with an angry fan. It was not a great look.
In fact, it was a terrible look, in my opinion, and while I know there are fans of his that probably applauded his feistiness in the heat of the moment, I just thought to myself that it wasn’t acceptable for a QB1 to do that, at all. I am sure Matt Hasslebeck, Warren Moon, Krieg, and Jim Zorn heard all kinds of shit from drunk fans in the stands, and they let it slide. It comes with the job.
But there were other job related things that Geno did really well in Seattle. Generally, he was a very accurate passer, and he threw a beautiful deep ball. Over the past three seasons, he has been one of the best fourth quarterback come back winning quarterbacks in the game. He also almost always played well in a muddied pocket, staying strong, moving to avoid sacks and still getting off accurate passes. These are things that he was pretty good at, and that is why I think it is just goofy whenever I see someone say that he sucks. It quite literally looks like they just don’t know ball, and they want someone else as the Seahawks quarterback who isn’t Geno Smith.
Well, now they have their wish. Hopefully, they are kinder to the next starter if he is able to also provide capable QB play on Sundays.
For the record, I think Vegas is a great fit for Geno Smith, and I expect him to do well there for the next few years. It is not because Pete Carroll is there either, welcoming him with a warm loving embrace. I suspect Tom Brady’s presence will have a positive effect on him, and I think he’s a really good system fit for Chip Kelly who now utilizes more pro style play action passing than ever before. He’s also going to have an incredibly bright young tight end to throw at, and if Tyler Lockett joins, I think they can be competitive this year.
As, for the Seattle Seahawks, I absolutely believe that this was the right call. Geno Smith is not likely the long term answer here at QB1, and therefore, there is very little need to pay him as such.
Seattle was interested in $35 million APY, not the $45 million he wanted. They probably also weren’t very interested in a bunch of guarantees tied into future years where if they drafted a young quarterback that they liked a lot, it would be harder to move Geno off the cap in 2026 or 2027 when they would be ready for the youngster to take over. I believe Seattle was looking to sign Geno to another team friendly deal in order to go year to year with him until they could find a younger alternative, and he wanted a larger commitment than they were willing to offer.
And I would also say this; if you are to pay a soon to be 35 year old quarterback that kind of money, and there is a soon to be 28 year old quarterback on the free agent market who is basically a younger version of him, doesn’t it make some sense to go after the younger fella, instead? I sorta think it is.
Of course by this, you probably can guess I am referring to Sam Darnold, and the reports that Seattle is now interested in him. Well, I am. Let’s talk for a moment about Sam.
If news breaks on Monday or Tuesday that the Seahawks and Sam Darnold have agreed to basically the same deal that they were offering Geno Smith, I would be pretty damn happy about that. I have been actively pontificating on this blog for months now about Seattle bringing in Darnold.
For me, I think Sam Darnold is essentially a seven year younger version of Geno Smith. I think he’s got similar arm talent, and similar abilities as a play action quarterback, and therefore, I think he’s potentially a really solid fit for this Kubiak scheme (which he has played in). A three year Baker Mayfield type of deal would satisfy me greatly, if Darnold were to sign it here for that.
And I get it if that would not wow you, and you would treat that news with skepticism, and maybe disappointment. Maybe you would be a more of a Justin Fields fan, or there’s someone in the draft that you would rather see. I would understand that.
But for me, I just look at system fit, age, and timelines. Sam Darnold, for me, kinda feels right for Seattle with where they are right now with these new coaches, and youth on the roster. He’s seasoned, and it feels like potentially he is really coming into his own as a passer. I think Darnold is a worthy gamble, and maybe more so than any of the quarterbacks in the draft this year, and there is a few I like.
I also think that Seattle signing Darnold would not prevent them from drafting a quarterback if one they fell in love with fell to this in April, or within the next few years. I just simply view him potentially as a younger safety net QB1, which is basically how I viewed Geno over the past three season.
Anyhoo, these are kind of my thoughts on the potential of Darnold in Seattle right now. Back to Geno Smith.
I really, truly, deeply appreciate Geno, and his time spent in Seattle. I have enjoyed rooting for his success. It was fun seeing him come out of nowhere and surprise us with his play, and I really do wish him well in Vegas.
I also know that this coming draft class is especially deep at defensive tackle, tight end, running back, and there are some really good interior offensive linemen prospects. Seattle can use that third round pick from Vegas to get a really special player on the defensive line, or a really talented tight end, or offensive guard. They can flush out this roster with physical players so that Mike Macdonald better see his vision through with his guys, and not Pete Carroll holdovers.
Because of this, I really do think this was a good deal for Seattle, no matter what the negative narrative is right now around this team. I don’t think this is necessarily any rebuild mode they are entering. It proved not to be that when they traded Russell Wilson, and therefore, I don’t think it should be viewed that way now.
But let’s see where we are in all of this in a week of the first wave of free agency where Seattle now has the seventh best cap space to shop. Fans could be looking at this thing very differently if in a week’s time Seattle has signed Sam Darnold, Cooper Kupp, center Drew Dalman, and guard Aaron Banks. All of these guys fit the Kubiak scheme, and then there’s the draft to consider. This could be just beginning of a really cool offseason.
Here is one final other tidbit I want to throw at you. Over the course of these last few days, there have been whispers around the Seahawks about how strained of relationship DK Metcalf and Geno Smith had with each other over the past couple seasons. In fact, there is enough noise around this that I wouldn’t be totally surprised if, with Geno now shipped out, DK has a change of heart, and is more willing to stay. In fact, I would not be completely shocked if this proves true, and he sticks around on a new deal. We shall see soon enough.
Well, Wednesday was certainly interesting news cycle for the Seattle Seahawks. On the same day the team announced the release of long time fan favorite Tyler Lockett, their bigger superstar receiver, DK Metcalf, officially requested a trade. What a fun way to distract from the crazy ass trade war the US has started with Canada! LOL!
Honestly, I get it if this news is upsetting to a lot of Seahawk fans. If you are upset by this, I get it. I do. For me, I am not too upset.
I loved having Tyler Lockett in Seattle over the years, and I am still a big fan and believer in DK Metcalf. I also believe that Jaxon Smith Njigba is growing into the primary receiver for the Seahawks, will need to be paid in a couple years, and if there is a time to trade a rare talent such as DK, now is probably a good time, if the right deal presents itself.
Sometimes, change is a really good thing. A year ago, I thought it was right to move on from Pete Carroll for Mike Macdonald.
I liked the hire of Macdonald a lot. He’s a Baltimore guy, and I felt under Carroll, Seattle drifted away too much from being the physical team it was a decade ago. I felt a bright young Baltimore guy like Macdonald, a Harbaugh guy, was needed, and Seattle’s defense showed significant enough signs of improvement in his first year coaching that validated the hire, in my mind. I’m excited about what this defense can be in year two.
I also think it is now the right move for this team to reallocate big funds away from skill positions and place these dollars into the offensive line. John Schneider spent two years building up the defensive line into respectability, and it is time to now do this for the offensive line, and I do not just want to see them add a couple rookies into it, and call it good.
I want two proven quality vets, and if that comes at the expense of a couple expensive receivers, I am good with it. We still have JSN, and John Schneider has a good eye for drafting receivers over the years. I will trust John to find us another good one.
In a nutshell, this is why I am not upset over with this news. Love Tyler, love DK, but I am ready for a change.. I think.
I am! I’m ready.
Here are my thoughts on both.
Tyler Lockett
In my opinion, I think Tyler Lockett ranks as the second best receiver in the history of the Seahawk franchise. What is fascinating about his story is that he shares the same birthdate with Steve Largent, who is the best receiver in franchise history, and what is even more wild than that is that both players grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma. So, on top of all the resiliency and consistency, spectacular play, and production that Seattle got from Tyler, his history here is full of fun factoids.
I also think, for as good as Tyler was on the field, and he was really good, he was even a better person off of it. He was as good of a teammate as you would hope to find in the league. He was super supportive of Geno Smith when Seattle moved on from Russell Wilson, he was supportive of Mike Macdonald when he replaced the legendary Pete Carroll, and I think he has been a great role model for all of his younger teammates over the recent years of transition. As a person, he is simply as good as it can ever possibly get.
In many of these ways, I will probably miss Tyler Lockett more than I will ever miss DK Metcalf. I am holding onto a slim hope that maybe Tyler finds a cold enough market that he returns to Seattle at a reduced cost in a month’s time, but I am not putting a lot of stock into that.
For one, I do not believe Tyler is necessarily an ideal fit for their new scheme under coordinator Klint Kubiak which requires more physicality out of receivers as blockers on outside zone run plays, and also for them to be big YAC players with the football. We have all seen Tyler making routine business decisions in the open field after catches in recent years. That will not cut it in this scheme.
JSN, with his blend of crisp route running, soft hands, YAC production, and size to factor as a blocker, is an idea fit for a Shanahan/Kubiak offense. In a hypothetical scenario, if Seattle was able to entice Cooper Kupp to join the team up here to replace DK, he and JSN could cook up pretty well together for a few years, I suspect. These guys are perfect west coast offense receivers, but I digress.
For Tyler, I think the destination that would make a lot of sense for him would be Kansas City where they aren’t likely going to be able to afford DK, but Andy Reid would be able to make great use of his route running skills with Patrick Mahomes throwing the ball, and I think he would more than be willing to live with whatever business decisions he would make after the catch. When you have a superstar at quarterback, you just want to surround him with reliable hands and guys who get open. That is Tyler Lockett, even to this day, probably.
I just hate that on a day that Tyler Lockett should be celebrated for all he as done as a Seahawk and thanked, we have to share this news of his release with the news of DK wanting out. Apparently, the Seahawks hated this too because reports are that they are pissed DK’s front leaked this trade request to the media on the same day they released Tyler. Wednesday was supposed to be a celebration of Tyler Lockett and instead, DK and his agents crapped all over it. That sucks.
But onto DK Metcalf.
DK Metcalf
I like DK Metcalf. I take a lot of heat from friends who aren’t as keen on him as I am, and I have staunchly remained his defender. I understand how some of his antics rub people wrong, but I appreciate the rare talents he provides as a player, and I like guys who play with a bit of chip.
I think DK is a truly rare talent in this league, more so than maybe some other fans view him. His size and speed ratio forces defensive coaches to be aware of him at all times, and I think his presence on the field helps others around him. Tyler benefitted greatly from DK, and so has JSN, in my opinion.
I also think that what DK provides as a nasty run blocker would work very nicely in this new scheme. On top of being a threat to take the top of defenses off, Ken Walker runs to the outside with him blocking would be a lot of fun to watch with a commitment to this particular scheme.
But I am not super thrilled about paying top dollar to a player who maybe doesn’t fully want to be here any longer, and I see this as a unique advantage for Seattle to get pretty decent value out of him in a trade potentially. So, I am game to it.
For the record, I do not expect him to be back with the team. This is just my hunch, but I don’t think he has fully embraced the new coaches, and I don’t think that he has a deep connection with Geno Smith, and other players on the team outside of Tyler who is no longer here. I also don’t think he feels this organization is on it’s way to winning a title soon, and I think he would probably like to get paid big time either in a bigger glitzier market, or on a team that is closer to title contention. It is reported that multiple teams are interested, and when multiple teams show enough interest, usually a bidding war happens. Therefore, I think he’s most likely out-y. If I am wrong and he plays another season here, I will enjoy watching him again for a bit longer, but I don’t think I am. He will most likely be elsewhere in a few months, if not days or weeks.
The speculation for what Seattle could get for DK Metcalf is probably going to be all over the place. Last Friday, it was reported that the Green Bay Packers were willing to offer a high pick and one of their talented young receivers and they felt confident that they could put together a package to move the needle for Seattle, but Josina Anderson tweeted on Wednesday night that a team is willing to give at least a third round pick for him… hhhhhmmmm.
I am here to tell you right now, that if all John Schneider hears from teams are third round picks and change for DK Metcalf, he will hang up the phone, and a disgruntled DK Metcalf will be playing ball in Seattle 2025. Seattle holds all of the leverage in this, and we have seen John get very stubborn before with players such as Earl Thomas wanting out. Seattle can walk back DK Metcalf in 2025, and they can franchise tag him in 2026, and even 2027, if they so desire.
But I don’t think deals will low ball for him. Like I said, there will be a market.
The teams who reportedly appear most interested are Green Bay, Buffalo, The Chargers, Vegas, Kansas City, and New England. Here are some interesting, off the top of my head trade ideas for each of these teams that could be doable.
Green Bay sends Pick 23 and WR Dontayvion Wicks. Seattle get a late first round pick and a young receiver with good physicality who could serve as the Robin to JSN’s Batman for a couple seasons left on a rookie contract. The Pack won’t find a better receiver in this draft at 23, so they better pony it up.
Buffalo sends Pick 62 and TE Dalton Kincaid. Seattle showed interest in Kincaid a couple drafts ago, and Klint Kubiak loves to use multiple tight ends in his scheme. Kincaid has the talent to be George Kittle-esque and Seattle can use free agency to find a stop gap starter opposite of JSN and use the draft to address the position again. A late second round pick added gets the deal done.
The LA Chargers send Pick 22 and WR Quentin Johnston. Johnston has been a bit of a disappointment of a first round pick, and they have Ladd McConkey to pair with DK. Johnston’s trade value wouldn’t be much if they go after DK, but he could have value in Seattle for a while as a second receiver to JSN in a run centric Shanahan scheme.
Vegas sends picks 37 and 73 and TE Michael Mayer to Seattle for DK Metcalf and Geno Smith. Okay, hang with me for a moment on this one. Pete Carroll loves both of these players, and I think Tom Brady probably has some appreciation for Geno Smith as well seeing the value of DK Metcalf. Vegas has two talented young tight ends on their roster and they have given Mayer an opportunity to seek out a trade. I don’t think the trade market would be much for Geno Smith, but Vegas could be the one team that would see more value in him, and maybe Vegas bites on this package. Seattle could pursue Sam Darnold in free agency and be prepared to pivot to Jimmy Garoppolo, if needed, and both veterans know the Kubiak offense. Seattle can also look to the draft. It is an interesting thought, if not wholly likely.
Kansas City sends picks 31 and 95. It is reported that Seattle’s asking price is a first and a third round pick and KC is willing to cough it up to get the deal done.
New England sends Pick 69 and DE Keion White. Seattle gets a high third round pick and a talented defensive lineman with a length, strength, and athleticism to rush from the edge and inside. This is how Seattle makes a good defensive line better, and he has two years remaining on his rookie contract before he needs to get paid. The draft pick isn’t exciting but White is, and this is the trade scenario out of this bunch would most excite me.
Anyhoo, these are just some spitball ideas for DK trades. I wouldn’t be shocked if more teams look to get into this mix. Again, this a bad free agent year for receivers and it isn’t a great class for them either. Therefore, I think it all lines up for a DK trade. It might takes several weeks, though, and it might even all the way up to draft night. We shall see.
Final Thoughts
I think it majorly blows that DK stole Wednesday away from Tyler Lockett. The move of leaking this trade request out there on that day was the ultimate impulsive younger brother thing to do to the do right thing older brother of Tyler Lockett. This is my feelings on it in a nutshell, and in a way it is fitting. Tyler was the epitome of solid in Seattle, and, at times, DK acted like a spoiled brat in games.
DK will forever be known as that dynamic Seattle athlete who casual fans will know because of his freakish size and physical traits, and yet, at the same time, he just never really fully lived up to all the hype. Some will blame the Seahawk organization for that, and others will the player. For me, I think blames lays both ways a bit. Pete Carroll could have down more to allow his coaches to be more creative with him, and DK could have done more to be a precision route runner and better team player, as well.
In a dating life analogy, DK, to me, comes across like a big strapping dude who’s physical dynamics sweep you off your feet, and you are like Madeline Kahn laying in after glow in the final act of Young Frankenstein, singing away like a lunatic. He’s a dude you get swept up with for a while, but then overtime, the novelty wears off when he doesn’t do enough of the little things right. Then you find yourself thinking about the short lawyer with a bald patch on the back of his head but the Summer house in the San Juans.
Tyler Lockett, on the other hand, that is the dude who maybe doesn’t immediately blow you away, but when you see how special he is, you fall deeply in love with, you take him to the alter, and you never let him go.. until you have to because of age and durability and everything else around football.. but really, you don’t let that guy go.
I will miss Tyler Lockett. I will miss his clutch moments in games, incredible sideline catches, and the sneaky ways he gets wide open deep down field on play action plays, and his underrated ability to catch passes in contested coverages.
Tyler Lockett was an incredibly talented NFL receiver in Seattle. Outsiders never saw it enough with him, but Seahawk fans did. He will always be universally loved here.
I don’t know how much more he has left in the tank as a player. He looked slower in 2024 than I have seen him, and I think each year, injuries have kinda been more of an issue for him. I don’t suspect he will get a big contract somewhere else, but I would like to see him end up on a team like Kansas City where I think a head coach like Andy Reid would see value in him, and he gets a shot at a ring. That’s my hope for him.
As for DK, if you want him Green Bay, Vegas, Buffalo, or KC, you better come with an offer that means it.
Over the past few days, it has been quite a news cycle for Seattle Seahawk fans. On Sunday afternoon, it was reported that the Mike Macdonald and the Seattle Seahawks finally settled upon their new offensive coordinator who will replace Ryan Grubb. Two days prior to that, it was announced to the world that 73 year old Pete Carroll would take over the Las Vegas Raiders head coaching gig. I think both news events are worth touching on here, and I also think there’s a chance that both fronts could have impact on each other in the coming months, and I will explain later.
Firstly, here are my collected thoughts on Mike Macdonald choosing former New Orleans Saints coordinator Klint Kubiak for the gig here. On the surface, I like the move a lot, and I believe it felt inevitable for a while that he would be the guy chosen here to replace Ryan Grubb.
Kubiak is an experienced play caller who has been a coach in the league for sometime now. He’s also got strong NFL bloodlines with his dad Gary being a former NFL quarterback, coordinator, and Super Bowl winning head coach, and his philosophy is strongly tied to the Mike Shanahan system that has retaken the league in recent years. It is clear that based on most of the candidates that Seattle was interviewing, they had particular interest in the Shanahan system, and by extension of it, the Sean McVay system. Arguably, they got the top available person on the market to agree to come here to incorporate it. Bravo. Of the list of known candidates who interviewed with this team, I preferred Kubiak.
Personally, I wasn’t super stoked about the prospects of Seattle hiring the Detroit Lions offensive line coach to come out here to OC. I loved what the Lions offense has turned into over the past couple years, but for this gig out here, I needed an experienced NFL play caller. Maybe Hank Fraley will blossom into a sharp offensive play caller someday, but after one year with Ryan Grubb, and two years of Shane Waldron, I kinda needed Mike Macdonald’s choice to be someone who has been around the league for a while and has experience play calling against NFL defenses. Of the persons they interviewed, I kinda needed it to be Klint Kubiak.
And I totally get it if this selection does not wow you. Seattle has toiled with being good enough to compete for the playoffs but not good enough to win in them for nearly a decade now since their back to back Super Bowls. They aren’t a bad NFL team, but they aren’t an A Lister organization currently, either. So, I get it that when any move they make, it is likely to be met with a bit of a toxic skepticism from some fans, and I anticipate that there will be sorts who will look at Kubiak and his stints in Minnesota and Nola, and not be fully embracing of the hire.
My feelings on this front, is that if there is push back on this hire from fans, it likely is reflective of folks who are tired of Seattle being middling more than anything else. At this time last year, Seattle had just hired Mike Macdonald who many thought was the brightest young head coaching candidate out there, and then it was seen that they pulled off a coup by luring popular UW offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb to pair with him. Diehard Husky fans poured over promises to Seahawk fans just how special and dynamic Grubb would make this offense become with its power trio of receivers and Geno Smith, but the reality was that he was not ready to match wits against NFL defenses on a consistent basis, and he had to be babysat by coaches working under him at times, per reports.
So, I think this is very much an important hire for Seattle, and it is perhaps their biggest move of the offseason, if they do not make major changes to their personnel. They have to get this hire right by Kubiak, or fan discontent will only grow. That is the risk they made when they decided to move on from the legend of Pete Carroll for the young upside of Mike Macdonald.
But many fans are growing more tired of Seattle being in the middle of the pack. I get that. It has been four years since they last won their division, and it has been five years since they last won a playoff game. I feel your frustrations.
You want them to be more than what they are, and you might even be a bit more frustrated that they simply don’t tear it all down to struggle at the bottom for a while in order to built themselves up with a bunch of lottery picks from the NFL Draft. I get it.
The trouble is that the teams that tend to often pick in the top five or ten of the draft, usually routinely suck as clubs. These are the Jets, the Giants, Jaguars, Browns, Titans, and Cardinals. They tend to give up on quarterbacks too early, and coaches too fast, and it is a rinse and repeat vicious cycle for them.
Seattle is not that sort of organization. They strive to be competitive every year much like the Pittsburgh Steelers. They moved on from Pete Carroll last year when everyone assumed that they would replace him with a bright young offensive minded head coach, and they took another defensive minded head coach simply because he was the guy they believed was the best overall coach out there. The result was ten wins. This feels very much like Seattle.
Now they have paired Macdonald with a coordinator who, while maybe not the flashiest, comes from a balanced run married with play action system that will be more aligned at what Macdonald wants to do. For all those who will be likely to doubt his success here, he had a fair degree of success coaching this system in Minnesota getting a bright play out of Kirk Cousins, and his first two games of 2024 down in Nola proved spectacular before the swarm of injuries hit his offensive personnel. While there is no guarantee that Kubiak is going to be a big hit here, I think it is also true that the book is not fully out on him yet as a coach. This is where I think his pedigree matters.
He is the son of Gary Kubiak who has coached highly productive offenses throughout the league in Houston, Denver, Baltimore, and Minnesota. In fact, Mike Macdonald was in Baltimore when Gary coached Joe Flacco in 2014, and the Ravens had the most explosive attack in the league, and Flacco had his best statistical year as a passer. I am positive that when Grubb was fired, Macdonald likely thought of Klint Kubiak probably right off the bat by witness to what his father had accomplished.
Klint Kubiak also comes to this staff with Super Bowl experience being Brock Purdy’s QB coach in San Fransisco the year before last when they went to the Super Bowl and Purdy looked like the second coming of Joe Montana. Personally, I think it matters that our new OC has a deep background in coaching QBs and it appears that Klint it pretty good at it.
For the sake of throwing a little spicy speculation into this hire, I think it is worth pointing out that should Seattle choose to be a surprise team in the offseason pursuing Sam Darnold, well, Darnold was QB2 for San Francisco two years ago, and thus he probably knows very well what Kubiak plans to run here, and Kubiak knows him well. If Seattle’s front office has a desire to get younger at quarterback than Geno Smith, and Kubiak has a desire to bring in a quarterback who knows his system pretty well, I wouldn’t totally brush off this idea of Darnold coming in. I have been outwardly speculating about Seattle perhaps being interested in him for a while, and this hire of Kudiak only adds to the fuel behind those thoughts I hold.
I am not suggesting that Sam Darnold to Seattle is anything close to a given, nor am I actively trying to push Geno Smith out the door on my humble blog. I am just saying that certain aspects of Darnold sorta align with what Seattle could realistically do at quarterback given the likelihood that they will not be picking in the top five of the draft annually where bright young college quarterbacks typically now get selected. Do they want to pay 34 year old Geno Smith a big three year extension this offseason, or will they be more willing to take an educated guess on the upside of 27 year old Sam Darnold instead, and pivot towards his availability?
Many would see this as a lateral move at quarterback, and I get that. Personally, I think Darnold falls into a similar category of quarterback as Geno Smith. With Darnold, however, Seattle could conceivably have about a seven year window of steady play with a definite possibility that his ceiling of a player has not been met, yet. With Geno, however, I think even his strongest supporters would say that his window of playing quality QB1 ball is probably about two more years.
So, I am just going to leave my thoughts on the potential of Darnold to Seattle at that. On the surface, I think it is interesting, and with this new hire, I think it only adds fuel to the notion.
I will say that whomever Seattle does have quarterbacking here over the next few years, this hire feels more promising for that player whether it is Geno Smith or someone else. When the Mike Shanahan system clicks, it is incredibly quarterback friendly. Many quarterbacks have found success running it, and often times, they have not been premiere physical talents, either. Kirk Cousins, Matt Schaub, Joe Flacco, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Brock Purdy are not who you think about when you think of big rocket armed quarterbacks who have tilted the fields on Sundays like a Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes, or even a Joe Burrow.
You don’t need a freak of nature to run the Shanahan machine. You just need a dude who has good enough accuracy and athleticism to handle bootleg roll outs, smarts to know the playbook and where to go with the ball, and probably enough size to see where to go with the ball over the middle of the field. If he’s got a big arm, great, but really, this is a system tailor made for a dude willing to be a good game manager.
There are a lot of quarterbacks in this league who could find success in this scheme with the right parts in place. Sam Howell, as bad as he looked against Green Bay when he was forced into the game, could conceivably find success should Seattle turn to him down the road. I can imagine a middling guy like Mac Jones having some success, or even Spencer Rattler if Seattle wanted to now work out a trade for him.
Or they could just as easily choose to hang onto Geno Smith a few more years, and he could most likely run it to pretty good effect. I feel like with this hire, many possibilities open up for Seattle at QB, and that includes taking a day two or mid round flyer on a quarterback in the draft this Spring.
At any rate, I am glad they settled for Kubiak. I got worried about some of the unknowns with Fraley, Adam Stenavich (never called plays in Green Bay despite his OC title), and Grant Udinski. I know there is some speculation out there that Fraley might have been their top choice, but Ian Rapoport’s tweet suggests that Kubiak was their guy all along. Either way, I am glad that it is settled, and we can move onto an offseason that will surely focus largely on fixing the offensive line.
When Seattle closed their season out almost a month ago now, I stated my desires to see a change at offensive coordinator, a major focus of improvement to the offensive line, and for them to keep an open mind at quarterback. They have now accomplished the first task.
Let us now see how they approach the offensive line, and I hope it is with aggression, and let us see how they handle what they have at quarterback. This feels like a pivotal offseason for John Schneider on both of these fronts. We shall soon enough see.
Onto thoughts about Pete Carroll with the Raiders
I was happy news brought Friday morning that Pete Carroll got back into the league by agreeing to coach the Vegas Raiders. I don’t particularly like the Raiders, but I am pretty long over the old AFC rivalry we used to have with them a quarter century ago.
I think that a lot of Raiders fans are pretty obnoxious people, and I was at Lumen Field last year when we blew that overtime game to them, and lost. I was followed, and heckled by a couple thuggish young Raiders fans as I was walking to my bus stop on Alaska. I am sure other Seahawk fans were being harassed, as well. Raider Nation walked out of Lumen Field as if they had just won a championship game, and they wanted Seattle fans to feel it.
The Raider faithful are not the only fans to behave this way. I suspect fans from many other markets come into Seattle sensing that Seatteites aren’t very aggressive people by nature, there is not a lot of edginess in the PNW, in general, and when their visiting team wins, they love to stir up shit with disappointed Seahawk fans. I have seen it amplified with New York fans, San Francisco fans, and Philly fans, especially.
But Raider fans are a whole different level of toxicity. For that reason, I have always particularly enjoyed their long suffering.
Therefore, I will say that because I am still very staunchly a Pete Carroll fan, I will be perfectly willing to pause my Raider schadenfreude for the next however many years Carroll coaches down there. When they aren’t playing against, Seattle, I will root for them.
And they need Pete Carroll desperately there. They need a total culture reset, and Pete Carroll is a hall of fame culture builder. I suspect he will get them going the right direction straight out of the gates.
I also anticipate we will see former Seahawks down there fairly soon. Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson will be free agents, and Wagner in particular I can see heading down there. Jarran Reed could be on his way, as well, and should Seattle sever ties with Tyler Lockett, or Geno Smith, I think Vegas would be the prime landing spot for both.
It wouldn’t shock me if Vegas calls Seattle about DK Metcalf’s availability via trade, or even Riq Woolen. With Kubiak bringing in his Shanahan offense, I don’t know how much DK is a fit for that, and Woolen seems maybe more of a Carroll style outside corner than maybe perhaps Macdonald’s, but I am projecting here on both accounts.
I see a lot of speculation out there that the Raiders could show interest in Geno Smith given how much Pete Carroll favored him, and that there remains a lot of mutual respect between the QB and coach. In that, I have seen it suggested that perhaps John Schneider has never been as warm about Geno as Pete was, and would be fine to move on if negotiations proved too difficult.
I would just say to that, if Pete Carroll knows how John truly feels about Geno, instead of calling him and asking what it would take to deal him to Vegas, Pete Carroll could simply tell the Vegas GM to hold tight and not do anything, and see if Seattle just cuts Geno outright if a team friendly extension cannot be had. If Pete can sorta detect that scenario, why would he encourage his GM to hand Seattle a valuable draft pick?
So, I would just encourage that maybe breaks be pumped a bit on the idea that suddenly Vegas will trade one of their third round picks to Seattle for an older quarterback that Seattle might be reluctant to sign to a big extension. I am very skeptical of that probability when there will be other quarterbacks on the market they could just as easily pursue.
Here is what I would say about what Pete likely wants to do in Vegas. I think he sees about a three or four year window to finally right their ship and have them contending. I don’t think he will likely want to babysit a rookie quarterback in that stretch of time. He will want to be paired with a veteran, and certainly Geno Smith or Russell Wilson could be prime candidates. I could also see them wanting to aggressively pursue Sam Darnold and perhaps pay him top market value. It could be a situation as to whether that is where Darnold wants to be, though, or does he want to go to a team that is, in his mind, a closer contender in a division that does not feature Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert.
Oddly, I could see scenarios where Vegas trades for Geno (or signs him in free agency if he is cut), brings in Russell Wilson to reunite with the guy who drafted him, and perhaps even battles against Seattle for the likes of Darnold. In any of these scenarios, it is likely going to have a pull on Seahawk fans, but at any rate, I think it if for almost certain that Pete will want to pair with a veteran quarterback who he really likes and trusts a lot.
It is going to be really interesting down there with how they handle the QB spot. If I had to guess anything, I am now starting to think that a Russ and Pete reunion in Sin City now maybe has greater legs than I would have thought a couple days ago. There is a lot buzz building around that. The two personalities are wired very similarly on the holistic positively thinking stuff, and I think it is now possible that Russ has been humbled enough to now see that for him to exist as a starting NFL quarterback, it is probably best to not be cooking to the extent that he felt he needed to a few years back. I think it is also still very possible that Russ holds enough positive belief in himself that he would not shy away from signing with a team that has to play against Mahomes twice a year.
At any rate, I am happy for Pete, and I will be rooting for his success with the Silver and Black. With what he built up in Seattle with the Legion of Boom defense, I have always thought that Carroll had an affinity for the Raider way. Now he gets to close out his coaching career building it back up. I am interested in seeing where it now goes.
I am also very excited to see what Seattle can do this year with Kubiak paired with Macdonald. I feel like they are close to upper tier contention, and they have personnel who will fit what Kubiak will want to do at running back, receiver, and tight end, and quarterback even with all of my Geno speculations. They just need to fix that offensive line.
On Monday morning, less than two hours after I posted an article on this blog stating my desire for the Seattle Seahawks to move away from Ryan Grubb (and other matters I would love to see them address such as offensive line and the future at quarterback), they did just that. They canned Grubb.
I was elated with the news. I felt saw it coming for a while, and the only thing I found surprising was the amount of pushback with fans and some in the media. It was way more than I expected it to be, and I get it if you are a big time Husky fan who had a deep attachment to Grubb, but it clearly was not working with him here this year, and I have listed many reasons why.
Could have Grubb gotten better at his job in year two? Sure, it’s possible. It is also very possible that he wouldn’t have, and then suddenly you have a young head coach in Mike Macdonald potentially feeling the hot seat along with maybe GM John Schneider because the offense couldn’t connect with the defense enough for two years in a row.
So, I just wanted a couple days let dust settle before sharing my thoughts on the firing, and offering up some of my favorite potential candidates to replace Grubb. Here are my quick thoughts after the firing, and then my dudes that I really dig for this gig.
Firstly, firing Grubb was absolutely the right thing for Mike Macdonald to do. It had been painfully obvious throughout the course of the season that Grubb and Macdonald did not see eye to eye on how the offense should function. It is not that Ryan Grubb is a bad coach, it is that Grubb proved bad for what Macdonald wanted, and needed of this team.
There are now some very strong implications that Macdonald had numerous talks with Grubb after games that were squandered by the offense (Giants, Packers, Vikings, etc) about how game management was handled, run to pass ratios were lopsided, and yet Grubb could never seem to get the memo from his boss outside of one game in Arizona where the offense looked like it had a functional balanced plan of attack. It is also kinda now out in the open that Macdonald had to get his more NFL experienced coaches on the staff to tutor Grubb on how NFL defenses and offenses work.
Imagine being the passing coordinator having to explain to the person who is your boss in charge of the offense what NFL defenses do in the red zones against NFL offenses that college defenses don’t do. Yikes.
I have seen reactions from fans and some folks on podcasts and radio waves in Seattle that this firing was unfair to Grubb, and he deserved another chance in 2025. Okay, then. To that, I ask why.
Why does Mike Macdonald owe Ryan Grubb a second chance when Grubb had seventeen games in a NFL season to get on the same page with his boss and he failed to consistently do so?
If you think it is unfair for Ryan Grubb to be given the boot, how come you don’t think it would be unfair for Mike Macdonald to have to work with him again for another season?
Where is your allegiance in this?
Do you think he needed another shot simply because you are a big time Husky fan such as Dave Mahler on Sports Radio KJR and his former Husky QB buddy Hugh Millen?
Did you have high visions of grandeur that your Husky fandom would marry with your Seahawk fandom with Grubb play calling here?
Or is it that simply are you a bigger bleeding heart than you are a football fan, and morally you just find this firing super unfair?
None of these questions are an attack on anyone who hated this decision from the Seahawks, by the way. They are just meant to cut to the source of why there was so much outcry over the decision.
The Seattle Seahawks narrowly missed the playoffs this year because the offense was imbalanced and not nearly as complimentary to the defense as Mike Macdonald would have preferred it to be. It was not connected to Macdonald’s defense, on any level, and Macdonald wasn’t really asking that much from Grubb to bend a bit more to a balanced approach.
And who says that Macdonald did not give Grubb ample chances through the course of the season to correct course?
By way of SI writer Corbin Smith, it sounds like Macdonald had many talks with Grubb to adjust his offense more to the his will, and Grubb just failed to do it, almost stubbornly so. If your boss requests you to do things a certain way, and you routinely fail to adapt, you do not deserve to keep your job. This is how the business world works and why should the high profile world of the NFL be any different?
Ryan Grubb has made millions of dollars playing calling in college and now in the NFL. I am pretty sure he is not destined to have to now live out of an old RV parked across from a Safeway in Ballard while he works a mail route for sixteen hours a day.
I kinda think he will be alright in this, and will probably land on his feet just fine coaching again. He could return to college as a coordinator again. He could also stay in the league as a potential pass game coordinator which maybe he should do.
So, yeah, I don’t really feel to the need to rehash all of my reasons why I felt it was time to move on from Grubb. I don’t feel like the state of the offensive line was a big enough excuse to defend him, as there were many examples in games where the line showed better run blocking abilities than it did pass blocking.
If anything the state of the line should be seen as a bigger reason why Grubb’s play calling needed to go. So maybe don’t listen so much to former Husky Hugh Millen railing on the radio about how John Schneider is washed up and failed Ryan Grubb with offensive line talent, and maybe listen more to former NFL offensive linemen Mike Schlereth and Ray Roberts when they say the Grubb just didn’t do enough to put his offensive linemen in better situations to succeed.
What I believe is most important for Mike Macdonald moving forward his to pair himself with a smart offensive play caller who really understands NFL football, and who will be perfectly aligned with what Macdonald wants this team to be in terms of physicality and connectedness. Listening to the way Macdonald described his ideal offense recently, being able to be physical running the ball, getting the ball out fast to playmakers in space does make me think of the west coast offenses deployed by the McVay/Shanahan schemes of today, and it also made me think of a few other offenses out there, as well.
The one commonality I have with all my preferred candidates is that they are all coaches who have been quarterbacks. At the end of the day, I think it is just so much of an important advantage to get someone play calling who sees the game through the lens of a quarterback whether it is pass plays or run schemes. I think this is especially important if the head coach is a defensive minded one such as Macdonald. Someone high up on this staff needs to see the bigger picture from a quarterback’s view. Therefore, everyone on this list is going to have that common thread.
So, that said, moving forward, here is the list of candidates for the Seattle Seahawk offensive coordinator gig that I really like a lot for this team right now. For each one, I will go over the pros and cons, and likelihoods. Maybe at the end of this exercise, we will have a couple really good and likely candidates narrowed down.
Frank Reich
When I started thinking of Grubb replacements about a month ago when I felt it was more likely that he was going to be one and done here, Frank Reich was the first coach out there who came to mind. He coached top ten defenses in Philadelphia and Indianapolis that were more run centric versions of the west coast offense, and I just liked the idea that maybe he would return to coaching as a coordinator again instead of being a head coach after his last two stints.
The pros of hiring Reich are very obvious. He has been around pro football for over three decades both as a backup quarterback and a coach. He has worked great with a variety of quarterbacks, and gotten high results. He coached an incredibly dynamic Super Bowl winning offense in Philly six years ago, and had a good offense going for a while in Indy for a while as a head coach. He is also a very even keel mature dude who, in addition to Leslie Frazier, can offer wisdom and insight for what is still a young head coach in Macdonald. Perhaps most important, his offenses have always been tough physical running ones. Also, players seem to really like him a lot. He’s very genuine, and that is what Mike Macdonald is, as well.
On the surface, I can think of very little cons of hiring Reich should he decide that he wants to get back into coaching as a coordinator again. My question would be whether he still has the juice and fire for it, or whether at age 63, he would only be interested in giving coaching another go as a head coach again, if there was an opportunity for it. He’s older, he’s made a lot of money as a head coach twice, and he has won a ring as a coordinator. Maybe he is good to walk away from coaching and pursue other aspects of life, but if he does have the zest for running a professional offense again, I would absolutely love this hire.
Doug Pederson
Personally, I would be shocked if Doug Pederson decided that he wanted to be an OC again after all of his years being a head coach and winning a Super Bowl as one, but if he did, and wanted the gig up here, I would be pretty jacked up about his hiring. I just don’t see this as very likely. I would have to think that at age 56, after this dumb firing in super dysfunctional Jacksonville, he could take a year off, and be a candidate again with another vacancy. Maybe the Arizona job opens up, or Dallas, or Miami, or Tennessee.
I have a bit of a personal connection with Pederson. We were both Ferndale boys and he worked for a spell on my dad’s farm when we were in high school. On a personal level, it would be awesome if my old high school quarterback became the Seahawk OC, and as I knew him from way back then, he was a pretty big Seahawk fan. So, because of this, I cannot fully rule out this idea. He might dig moving back to PNW with the pressure off from being a HC and just call plays again.
The pros of Pederson being the next Seahawk OC are that he is from this area and his success with the Seahawks would likely matter to him greatly, he has been around the league for decades as a backup quarterback and coach at the highest levels, he’s a Super Bowl wining head coach, and he’s shown a pretty strong ability to be balanced on offense running the football. He is another guy who players tend to like, and could offer a wealth of insight and wisdom to the much younger Macdonald.
I can think of very little cons to hiring Doug Pederson. The only thing I can think of is just how exhausted he looked this last season in Jacksonville. If I were him, I would take another year off and really decide in that time if coaching is something that I would want to continue with, or whether I want to enjoy life was all the millions that I have made, and the fact that I won a title and never need to do it again. That’s what I think he will do. I think he takes this year off in 2025 to decide if coaching is still something for him.
Tee Martin
Tee Martin is a guy who I didn’t think about initially when I thought maybe they would move on from Grubb, but he is a name that I am seeing mentioned a lot. In case you are unaware, he is the current quarterbacks coach in Baltimore working with the greatest quarterback in the game in Lamar Jackson. I gotta admit it, I dig the idea of Martin a lot in Seattle, and let me explain.
There are huge pros to hiring Tee Martin. He is from Baltimore, knows Macdonald really well, and would probably know exactly what Macdonald means when describing his ideal offense. He has spent years in the league as a backup quarterback and a coach, and he has coordinating experience from his days at USC play calling for Sam Darnold. In fact, if the Seahawks wanted to pursue Darnold in the offseason, having Martin here as the OC could be a big selling factor. Martin can be viewed as responsible for transforming Lamar Jackson into a more complete quarterback capable of beating you as easily from the pocket as he is as a runner, and Lamar absolutely loves Tee Martin.
I cannot find any cons at about about bringing in Martin outside of the fact that he is only ever coordinated in college, but that doesn’t concern me because he has been around the league for six years as an assistant and he spent six years in the league as a backup quarterback. I think it is safe to say the Martin probably knows NFL football pretty well. Right now, I rate Tee Martin as one of the most likely coaches out there to land this gig. It makes that much sense.
Josh McCown
This is the guy who I think he getting a lot of buzz amongst the fans and other bloggers who hover around the Seattle Seahawks. He is the quarterback coach in Minnesota where we have seen Sam Darnold resurrect his career this year in ways in which nobody saw coming. Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell has a track record out of getting great results out of quarterbacks in his system from his time spent in Los Angeles with Sean McVay, and his time currently in Minnie, but I think it is fair to wonder how much of Darnold’s success this year is also due to McCown who spent 18 years in the league as a quarterback on 13 different teams giving him insight and pointers on how to elevate his game.
The pros to bring McCown are very obvious. Look what he has done with Darnold this year in his one year as the quarterback coach of the Vikings. Throw out the last game played against the Lions, and there has been a significant case for Sam Darnold being the MVP of the league this year much less Comeback Player. Should Seattle have a deep interest in bringing Darnold here to become the next franchise quarterback, then landing McCown would make all the sense in the world. The same would be very much equal if they wanted to instead trade for JJ McCarthy. It can also be said the if Seattle likes the offense the Pederson and Reich ran in Philadelphia a number of years ago, McCown was in that offense as a backup and therefore, would be pretty good familiarity.
The biggest con with hiring McCown as the OC would be that he has simply never done it before. That might not be a super big deal though because his familiarity with the league spans 18 years as a quarterback who has had to learn 13 different systems, and backup quarterbacks have a tendency of transitioning well to coordinating. It is very possible that McCown could interview with Macdonald and have a great grasp on what exact offense he wants for the Seahawks.
Another con for hiring McCown is that he could simply be such a hot coaching commodity that Macdonald loses him in a year or two for a head coaching gig, and we are left searching for candidates again in 2026 or 2027, but perhaps that would also probably be a good problem to have because that means that 2025 was that successful for the team.
Right now, I would say the hype for Josh McCown is super intriguing. Like Martin, I wouldn’t be surprised if he is one of the few coaches out there that are high on Macdonald’s list. We shall see.
Tanner Engstrand
This guy interviewed for the OC job last year in Seattle after Macdonald got hired, and seemingly lost out to Ryan Grubb. Given the fact that he is the pass game coordinator for the Detroit Lions, the team with the best offense in football right now, and a team that plays offense exactly like Macdonald’s describes his ideal offense playing, it is fair to imagine Seattle circling back to this guy.
The pros are that he is the pass coordinator for a quarterback in Jared Goff who comps pretty favorably to Geno Smith, he is a coach from the Jim Harbaugh tree where Macdonald partly springs from, and therefore it is probably safe to assume that he will be naturally more aligned with a physical running offense that Macdonald likely prefers. He is a former college quarterback who has a position coach for both quarterbacks and running backs. He has offensive coordinator experience from a brief stint in the XFL.
I can’t think of many cons about this guy outside of the fact that he interviewed for OC gigs last year with New England and Seattle and landed neither, but in terms of Seattle, I kinda have a sneaking suspicion that John Schneider was super in on Ryan Grubb becoming the coordinator here and with all things equal in interviews between Engstrand and Grubb, Macdonald got more swayed to take a shot with the candidate that the GM was pushing for, but that is just my own wild speculation. It could also be that maybe Engstrand wasn’t seriously interested in this gig thinking he could stick around longer in Detroit and wait for their OC Ben Johnson to leave and he would take over. With some rumblings out there now that Johnson is no longer desiring being a head coach and maybe wants to just continue on in Detroit play calling, Engstrand will feel a stronger need to move on for advancement elsewhere, and Seattle can come calling again.
On the surface, I like him as a candidate for the Seahawks. It is exciting to think of someone coming here and building an offense here that plays like the one in Detroit; tough, grinding run blocking that wears teams down, and builds lethal play action pass plays off of it. It is just such ultimate big boy football, and Seattle’s offense has very similar skill players to what the Lions have. For these reasons, I have to have Engstrand on this list.
Marcus Brady
Marcus Brady is a guy who I heard mentioned on a podcast the other day that really got my ears perked up when I heard the hosts discussing, and that led me to dig around a bit on the internet. First off, he was a quarterback who played small college ball in California and he had to venture up into Canada to spend a bunch of years playing in the CFL, and then he spent time coaching up there before landing coaching gigs in the NFL. In the NFL, he landed on the Indianapolis Colts coaching staff under Frank Reich where he worked as a quarterbacks coach, and eventually he became their offensive coordinator. Today, he is the pass game coordinator for Jim Harbaugh with the Chargers.
The pros with Brady are that he has spent time as an offensive coordinator in the CFL and the NFL, and he is a guy that Jim Harbaugh who is a mentor to Mike Macdonald thinks pretty highly about. You can chuckle about all the CFL background but Canadian football actually produces a lot of high end passing concepts, and has for decades. Current NFL offensive coaches have spent time studying their league. Brady has spent time working for both Reich and Harbaugh who are two offensive coaches known to be heavy leaners in the run game. This year under Harbaugh, the Chargers quietly had one of the more efficient offenses in the league. Justin Herbert threw 23 touchdowns and ONLY 3 INTERCEPTIONS. If what Macdonald craves most is a balanced offense that is physical in the run, and doesn’t make many mistakes, then I would imagine Marcus Brady is a very likely person to be interviewed here.
What are the cons and drawbacks and concerns with Brady? I don’t know. His stint as the OC in Indianapolis only last a year and a half as he was fired mid season in 2022 when Frank Reich was impulsively let go by Jim Irsay. His lone full year as OC there was when they replaced Phillip Rivers with Carson Wentz, and Wentz sucked, and they narrowly missed the playoffs after going 11-5 the year before. I guess on the surface, one could look at his stint there, and have a meh attitude about it.
I just think there is potentially something very interesting about this guy. After he was let go in Indy, he joined the Philly staff as an offensive consultant, and then he was highly sought after by Harbaugh in LA. Harbaugh, as much of a whack job as he can kinda come across as, is also sort of an idiot savant as a coach, and has a very good eye for coaching talent. The Chargers were a really well coached team this year, and Herbert was crazy efficient with the football. Something tells me that Brady could be a hot name for Seattle given what it feels like Macdonald wants. I kinda like him a lot. He’s an idea that is growing on me.
In Summary
These are the dudes out there externally that get me excited most for the Seattle Seahawks OC gig. I am sure that I left a lot of names out of other quality coaching candidates that folks are championing for. There is Klint Kubiak who is from the Shanahan school down in New Orleans that people seem to dig. Some people might think Mike Kafka with the Giants who Seattle was interested in as a head coach last year could be a great candidate because Andy Reid really loves him as a coach and so does Patrick Mahomes. I have seen some in the Seahawks media championing a bit for the return of Brian Schottenheimer who had Seattle as a top ten offense here for a while with Russell Wilson. I have seen some odd suggestions for Jon Gruden to be a consideration.
In the end, I think Seattle has to be really careful about getting this fit right for Macdonald. Is Mike Macdonald going to want someone from the Andy Reid or MacVay/Shanahan branches, or does he just want a Harbaugh guy who speaks his football love language?
Macdonald wants physical football here, and ball control. He wants to shrink the game and make things easier on his vaunted defense. That sounds a heck of a lot like Harbaugh football, both Harbaugh brothers, and his other old boss John Harbaugh is an Andy Reid guy. Frank Reich and Doug Pederson are Reid coaches.
That is why I kinda put Reich and Pederson at the very top of my list. They are guys sharing similar DNA with John Harbaugh. Both of them long time former NFL backup quarterbacks, both of them huge believers in the run game, highly successful coordinators and head coaches. Both of them currently out of the league right now and maybe wondering if there is a way back in.
A huge part of me believes that if either would genuinely consider the OC gig here, whether that could be a game changer for this franchise that we have not felt for over ten years. To pair the bright young defensive mind with Mike Macdonald with a sharp offensive mind in someone a couple decades older who has absolutely been there and done it all at super high levels that he can fully trust to run the offense to the point where he just does not need to think about much of it at all?
Yeah, sign me right up for that idea.
Conversely, all these other candidates super intrigue me, as well. If they can’t convince either former head coach to sniff out this gig here (very possible), the I really kinda think that Tee Martin, Josh McCown, Tanner Engstrand, and Markus Brady are all very likely candidates. Martin, Engstrand and Brady all have direct Harbaugh Brother tie ins to Macdonald, and Martin coached together with him.
McCown is just such an intriguing wildcard and a certain hot name in the coaching searches with what he has done with Sam Darnold this year. He might be a head coaching candidate very soon, depending on what the Vikings do in the playoffs. He has worked with Reich and Pederson, and other brilliant offensive minds. He could be a very strong lure for Darnold should the Viking quarterback be made available in free agency or trade, if Seattle wants him. He’s the biggest unknown in terms of a coordinator type, but something tells me that with long background as a quarterback, he will be well suited for the leap.
But at the end of the day, I think our guy may boil down to Tee Martin, Engstrand, and Marcus Brady. Unless behind close doors they really think in house Jake Peetz can be a serous candidate, I sorta think that this process may boil down to one of these three guys.
I would be down, but man would I ever love to see them land Reich or Pederson. I’m going to hang onto that until I have to let it go.
In his first year with the Seattle Seahawks, Mike Macdonald coached his team to a 10-7 finish, just missing out on the playoffs. That is a best first season win total for a new head coach in franchise history, better than Chuck Knox’s 9-7 finish in 1983, and better than Mike Holmgren’s 9-7 season in 1999. I suspect any long time Seahawk fan over the age of 40 would probably agree that joining the ranks of Holmgren and Knox is pretty good company. Therefore, I think this is pretty cool.
On the flip side, the Seattle Seahawks also achieved being the first team in NFL history to go 7-1 on the road, and not make the playoffs. That kinda sucks and home losses to the Giants, Rams, and Vikings sting more now knowing that each of these matches were very winnable for Seattle. Thus we have the highs and lows of this season pretty much summed up.
These 2024-25 Seattle Seahawks officially concluded their season by winning a game played in Los Angeles against the division winning Rams who started a backup quarterback nicknamed Pornstar Jimmy by Stephen A Smith, and a bunch of other backups because Sean McVay was too chicken shit to play Matt Stafford and other key starters. Even if this win wasn’t a decisive as I would have preferred, it felt nice that Seattle was able to get the W, and thus finish their season tied with the Rams at 10-7. I will take that.
It is good to see Seattle finish first year head coach Mike Macdonald on a positive two game win streak, and to feel momentum heading into the offseason where change will be inevitable. I am a big believer positive momentum carrying forth into a new offseason. The taste of narrowly missing out on the playoffs should sting, but the idea that they are building up towards something special should also be sensed. 10-7 is the best regular season finish that this team has had since 2020. That should mean something.
On a personable level, it also felt good to watch Geno Smith end his season on a high note, playing a statistically great game, and making a bunch of key incentives that has made him $6 million richer. Geno wasn’t perfect this season, but watching him getting beaten to a pulp on Sundays while playing behind a subpar offensive line and extremely suspect play calling made me more empathic to his cause.
Instead of recapping this game, I am more inclined to kick things forward into the new year focusing on what I feel this team needs to do in 2025 in order to get closer towards being a true contender. It is a very simple list of three things I would like to see happen.
I am not really interested in rehashing all of what transpired in 2024, as I think their season can be summed up in two easy sentences. They started off hot in September, but chilled very quickly by October. As the season wore on, their defense improved dramatically, but their offense fell off in a lackluster manner.
Heading into the 2025 Season, I think the Seattle Seahawks have a roster with enough talent to compete for the playoffs. Some will debate that, but I am actually very bullish on the talent that John Schneider has built up over the past three years. I think they are one more productive offseason away from taking the next step, but if you want to disagree with that, you are welcome to it.
I also firmly believe that this team has a head coach in Mike Macdonald who is, indeed, a pretty sharp defensive mind fully capable of out-scheming opponents. In that, however, I also firmly believe he needs to be paired with a sharp offensive coordinator who will better carry out a scheme that compliments his defense. For this organization to truly take it to the next level, finding this offensive coach is an absolute must this offseason.
I do not believe that Ryan Grubb proved to be a good match for Mike Macdonald, at all, and it would be in the best interest of this team (and probably Grubb himself) for them to move in a different direction. I actually put this as a higher matter of importance above the state of the offensive line, but more on that in a minute.
For now, I think that any talk of Macdonald being a questionable hire and John Schneider perhaps needing to be on the hot seat is impulsive noise from factions of the fanbase and media that are perhaps a bit too spoiled in the PNW with a decade and a half of Seattle football being meaningful in December. John Schneider is one of the most respected general managers in the league who routinely hits in the draft and finds value through trades and waiver wires. As already mentioned, Mike Macdonald is just the third head coach in Seahawks history to start his career here with a winning record in year one.
Bad organizations make bad decisions by listening to overreacting fans. Good organizations do a good job at seeing the bigger picture clearly, know when to be patient caring forth, and when to move on when something clearly is not working. I don’t suspect that Jody Allen is ready to move on from John Schneider when it appears that he got the head coaching hire right, and this coming draft looks like a good one to address the issues with the offensive line.
Could I be wrong on this? Sure, but I am pretty confident that I won’t be. We shall see.
What I do see, however, is three very simple aspects of the offense that I feel this team should address in order of importance. If this organization can nail these the right way, I think Seattle can be well positioned to win the NFC West in 2025. They are as follows.
Pair Mike Macdonald With A Bright Offensive Coach Who Fits His Vision
After getting hired in the Winter of 2024, Mike Macdonald stated that his vision for the Seattle Seahawks was to be a tough, physical team that played great defense, ran the ball well, and was a team that nobody wanted to play. His words made me think of the Baltimore Ravens, and the Michigan Wolverines, two football programs where his roots stem from. It was an exciting thought in my mind to envision something similar being built in Seattle, and it still is.
The biggest problem of the 2024 season was that Ryan Grubb really could not bring that offensive part of Macdonald’s vision together. Try as he might have, I think his instincts as a play caller was to abandon the run too easily whenever the defense showed faint signs of struggle, and then when he did lean into the run, and it would start working, his impulse was to often abandon it for his favored passing attack. The result of this often felt very disjointed as a product.
Honestly speaking, his play calling might have the worst that I have seen out of a Seahawk offense since the 1990’s. It teased with the passing attack, at times, but it never found consistency. He play called as if he had peak Payton Manning and the best offensive line in football, and he had neither of that.
I don’t really want to get down into the muck of the offensive line, either. Run blocking is much easier for offensive linemen to do together than pass blocking and Seattle had, for the most part, guys in the interiors of their offensive line who were more apt to be better run blockers in this league than pass protectors. Grubb just failed to device a scheme to suit them as an offensive line. It is that simple.
Grubb was more inclined to lean into a veteran quarterback, and that was what he put his trust into. The result was as big of a mixed bag from Geno Smith as you could find in a quarterback. Sure, his passing yardage went up, and so did his completion percentage, but his interceptions went dramatically up, as well.
Geno’s red zone interceptions lost us games this year that were winnable. That said, I am significantly more willing to place greater blame on Grubb for riding with this impulsive pass happy approach than I will for Geno throwing the amount of picks that he did, even these critical ones (although Geno isn’t totally absolved, more on that later).
Had Grubb adopted a more committed approach to running the ball, the offensive line could have stabilized better and we could have seem more games like they had in Arizona than what we got against the Bills, Packers, and 49ers at home. I truly believe this.
Even worse, as the season wore on, Grubb’s offense displayed tells to defenses that he simply did not do a good enough of a job altering and adjusting. He would substitute running backs where it became obvious that it was a pass play. Eventually, defenses stopped playing single high safeties because they knew Grubb would stay passing out of two high looks instead of challenging with the run. There were times in games where cameras caught Mike Macdonald looking dumbfounded when Seattle was on offense, and there were times where key offensive players displayed meltdowns on the sidelines.
Grubb also never committed enough to a play action approach to help keep defenders honest, and his compulsion to primarily play call out of shotgun made it harder to run the ball effectively. Simply put, he made life harder for his cheaply put together offensive line instead of easier, and he put undo pressure on Geno Smith to play perfect football practically all of the time. This is not good coaching.
So, I do not want to hear bringing up the state of the offensive line being a prime excuse for Ryan Grubb who was hired late in the hiring process of coaches last Winter because Seattle waited out Macdonald’s hire until after the AFC Championship game. Seattle took a shot on a college coordinator from the PNW who fans would recognize the name, and they gave it a shot. It did not work out, and it is that simple.
But do not use the offensive line as a reason to defend what Grubb was in Seattle this year.
This league is filled with subpar offensive lines. Minnesota does not have a great line, but they found ways to be wonderfully balanced with Sam Darnold at the helm. Seattle failed to find this was Grubb leading the offense. There is nothing in this season with Grubb that warrants his return. For me, it would be a stunner if he is given another go at it in 2025.
Instead, it is my biggest hope that Seattle goes a very different direction, and they bring in a guy who actually understands NFL defenses really well, and will know how to attack them on every level with the talent this team has on its roster. Who that person is, I don’t know. I am open to options, but I just need him to partner well with Macdonald and be in sync with the head coach’s vision of seeing this team being a tough, hard-nosed team that nobody wants to play.
The guy could even come in house with passing coordinator Jake Peetz, who the Seahawks pried away from Sean McVay with the Rams, and is said to be a bit of a hot commodity. Peetz has bounced around the league and has a track record out of getting career years out of Dereck Carr with the Raiders as QB coach, and Christian McCaffrey as a running back coach with the Panthers. He was a guy that McVay valued in Los Angeles, and was sorta sore to see leave for Seattle. He might be the top choice here to replace Grubb, should they move on, if his relationship is good with Macdonald.
But perhaps what Macdonald most needs is a proven coordinator with pelts on his wall who will truly act as a second head coach on the team. The guy who really runs the offense much like Steve Spagnuolo runs the defense for Andy Reid in Kansas City. Spagnuolo was a failed head coach but his defenses have always been stellar whenever he’s been a coordinator.
Perhaps Seattle reaches out to Frank Reich who didn’t really cut it as a head coach in Carolina or Indianapolis, but was a good offensive coordinator for the Super Bowl winning Eagles in 2018. During that year, the Eagles were an exciting dynamic running team that offered an explosive passing attack downfield. Reich was the one that Eagles fans most gave credit towards, and were bemoaning his departure to Indy, afterwards. Their offense fell off quickly in the seasons to follow, and there was regime change sorta after winning the title.
Perhaps Reich is someone who could come in and be content with essentially being given full control of the offense, and partnering up with Macdonald long term in order to win titles together. He has a demeanor that is players like, and I can imagine meshing well with Macdonald.
Personality is also an important thing to consider. I have seen Josh McDaniels as a suggested name, and he has been a way better play caller than head coach, but I don’t know if he is a good culture guy. Seattle, under the ownership of Jody Allen, still feels like a destination that values positive culture in the building, and I don’t think there was much positives that ever came out of McDaniels as a culture guy.
There will be other names to consider. I won’t go through the list of potential candidates, although Doug Pederson just got let go in Jacksonville and grew up in Ferndale. Would he be enticed to return to the PNW as a high paid coordinator? My hunch is that he will take a year off and wait out an opportunity to be a head coach again. Winning a Super Bowl as a head coach probably equates to not wanting to suck it up and retreat towards a coordinator role, but we shall see.
The important thing to find the right guy who is smart enough to properly go after NFL defenses, and meshes well with the head coach and players. Ultimately, this has got to be the goal, and Seattle must nail this hire this offseason if they do not believe Grubb is up for it.
Invest Properly With Fixing The Offensive Line
I have said this a few times, but it bares repeating. The NFL has offensive line problems league wide. Building great offensive lines is increasingly more difficult to do. The talents in college are more apt to be on defensive lines than offensive lines, as sacks lead to more dollars than pancake blocks do.
Also, all you bleeding hearts who have complained about Seattle’s offensive line for years can thank the last collective bargaining agreement that the player’s union forged for fucking up the ability of teams to physically practice in ways they had in the past that better build cohesion with linemen playing together. Nowadays it is paddy cakes on the field in August, and the early portion of the regular NFL season is a routine clown show for offenses to figure out their units. It literally is what it is, so we all have to deal with it in degrees.
That said, in 2024, Seattle had the cheapest offensive line in football, and it showed. Personally, I don’t blame the front office for pulling most of their resources on the defensive side to fix what had truly became an awful defense in the last three years of Pete Carroll’s time here, but now they need to buck up and do the same for the offense with their offensive line.
If I were the general manager of this team, I would most likely spend big on one quality veteran guard or center on the free agent market, and I would be open to trading for a player should one be available by that means. I would then look to the draft for a couple more. The draft next Spring appears to be promising for guards and tackles who could convert to a guard. Getting two of them feels necessary.
This won’t be a wildly exciting take for many fans, but I would also be willing to leave open the possibility that there exists a young player (or players) already on this roster that by simply moving onto another offensive coach, could be developed into a decent starter in 2025. Perhaps Christian Haynes is better served converting to a center and becomes an upgrade there over Olu Oluwatimi. Perhaps Anthony Bradford or Sataoa Laumea takes a big step forward as a player with a new approach on offense towards being run heavier. While it is easy to look at the Seattle’s line and proclaim that they need at least three new starters there, perhaps there is more potential there now than most fans are seeing, but they just haven’t been coached properly enough, or the scheme hasn’t committed enough towards what they do best. Honestly, I think this could be as big of a case as any for why this line was this bad in 2024.
At any rate, if John Schneider goes into this offseason shopping cheap again in free agency and then waiting to the third or fourth round before taking another guard, the public outcry for his job will almost certainly be at the highest point it has ever been, and it was pretty high with some through the course of this last season. Therefore, for the sake of sanity throughout the fanbase, I think it is very important that he hit this offseason hard with ways to improve this offensive line. It is an absolute must.
Be Open Minded About The Quarterback Position In 2025 And Beyond
This is going to sound like I am ready to move off of Geno Smith. That isn’t necessarily the case, but I do feel like it is time for John Schneider to think more long term about this situation at quarterback in Seattle.
For my money, based on his 2024 play on the field, Geno Smith has not earned another big contract extension in Seattle. I know he wasn’t helped by Grubb’s play calling and the offensive line, but he still felt too reckless with the football for my tastes, and what I feel like a franchise quarterback should be. I was at four games at home in this last year, they lost all four, and in each game, Geno turned the ball over in ways that cost them.
Personally, I really dig Geno a lot, and I think he is a very easy guy to root for with him wearing swank KISS t-shirts post game, and routinely taking accountability, but I also feel like age is now working against him, and he has just never really built off of his surprising 2022 season enough.
My gut kinda tells me that he is what he is. He is a mid tier starting quarterback who can win a decent team 9 or 10 games if they have enough talent (which Seattle does), but he’s also going to do things on occasion that will cost you some games (two red zone interceptions at home against the Rams in early November will forever be burned into my mind).
Because of all of this, I don’t want that signed to another big-ish three year extension. If they want to do a shorter termed extension this offseason, I am fine with it, but I think if they sign him to a three year $120 million extension just because they are afraid of the unknown, it is going to alienate a growing portion of the fanbase, I am afraid. I sense this growing online, in the stands, and on the airwaves.
2024 brought us a storyline in Seattle of opposing fans filling out seats at Lumen Field. I am no longer into shaming season ticket holders from selling their seats online in a region where the cost of living is high. The Seattle Seahawks need to do better putting a product on the field that is better than being a mid tier team. They got off to a decent start in 2024 by hiring a coach that would ultimately fix their once vaunted defense. Now, they need to center 2025 on the offense, and for causal fans who do not spend every waking hour pouring over analytics, Geno Smith probably does not get them wildly excited. He just does not. So, I think something needs to give in 2025.
In my ideal scenario, I would be very okay with Seattle pursuing Sam Darnold should he be available on the free agent market or by a franchise tag and trade scenario by Minnesota. I don’t know how likely this is because if I were the GM of the Vikings, I would be more inclined to sign him to a sizable extension and slowly develop JJ McCarthy behind him, but I have always been a Darnold fan, and you can search this blog as far back as 2021 when all the Trade Russ noise started to happen. I was super into Seattle trading for Darnold four years ago.
Color me Colin Cowherd, but Sam Darnold was my favorite quarterback coming out of college in the 2018 draft, and in this season, when he finally had a chance to be in a good situation in the league to be a starter, look what he was able to do with it. I don’t think it was all because of Kevin O’Connell, either. Darnold showed glimpses of this style of play on the bad teams of Carolina and the Jets. Neither organization could commit enough to uncorking his potential and it is no surprise the both teams remain basement dwellers in their divisions, respectively.
So laugh this one up, if you like, but Darnold is seven years younger than Geno, has better arm talent, he’s athletic enough, and is just hitting now his prime years. For all the silly talk of the Vikings giving up on JJ McCarthy, if they really wanted to replenish their 2025 draft stock that they lost moving up to draft the Wolverine quarterback, they could just as easily tag Darnold and work out a trade to probably numerous teams who would likely be willing to offer packages of picks and maybe players for him. Seattle, in particular, could offer Geno as a hedge for McCarthy coming back from his knee injury, and another player from an area of depth on their team along with draft picks.
Be honest. If you knew you could get the 2024 version of Sam Darnold for the next six years of Seattle Seahawk football, and you got him by sending your 2025 first round pick to Minnesota along with Geno Smith and Ken Walker, would you do it? I would sign up for that, especially if paired with an offensive play caller who comes from the McVay coaching tree, or the Andy Reid one.
Six years of this level of quarterback play from a more youthful Sam Darnold would probably be the shot in the arm that this fanbase could use in order to fill up the stands again with Seahawk jerseys. Seattle would still hold their second and third round picks in 2025 to address their offensive line, and perhaps that could lean further in free agency to address the line, as well.
At the very least, it is an interesting thought. How realistic it truly is would be another matter to discuss, but this would probably be my ideal scenario for this team if the front office does actually rate Darnold highly (I think they might) and the coaches dig him enough.
But as it stands, ideal scenarios do not come along often. Therefore, in that event, I wouldn’t mind seeing Seattle either take another flyer on a young quarterback with talent that another team has moved away from, or somebody in this coming draft class.
Maybe Will Levis is a guy who will be available via trade if Tennessee wants to draft another quarterback high. If I had to pick one young quarterback out there who might be on the trade market that has anything close to Darnold-ish potential in terms or stature and arm, it would be probably be Levis.
Maybe they take a shot on Daniel Jones, Mac Jones, or Zach Wilson to come in and compete with Geno. None of these guys get me excited but Daniel Jones had a fairly decent year in 2022 playing in a run heavy offense for the G Men, Mac Jones showed some promise as a rookie, and Zach Wilson had crazy hype around his arm talent coming out of BYU.
Maybe they really like a guy in this draft like Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart who has some fun moxie to his game, or maybe Shedeur Sanders slides in the draft like some think that he might. For my money, I am drawn to Dart with his maturity and play making skills. He gives off Bo Nix vibes with a smidgen of Jalen Hurts, and I would absolutely take that in Seattle.
Ohio State QB Will Howard is another guy who intrigues a lot. He is tall mature dude with good athleticism and arm traits that feel translatable to the NFL. He’s also played a lot of college football for Kansas State and the Buckeyes, and has his current team rolling in the college football playoffs. If he is there in the second round and the Seahawks select him, I think I would get behind that.
This coming draft class with quarterbacks is getting a bit of a bad rap, in my view. A lot of people are making blanket statements that it is a bad class, but I am not so sure. While I don’t think there are guys in this class who are going to comp to Andrew Luck or Josh Allen, I think there are guys who do comp closer towards Dak Prescott, Bo Nix, Geno Smith, Andy Dalton, Derick Carr, Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa, and Brock Purdy. Those sorts on cheap rookie contracts are worth taking shots on, in my view.
Getting a guy who is talented enough to be a decent NFL starter on a cheap rookie contract is an absolute golden ticket in this league. Ask 49er fans over the past couple years before injuries finally caught up to their aging team. Think about Russell Wilson in 2012-2015.
At any rate, these are probably the most realistic scenarios that I think Seattle, at this point now, should consider exploring at quarterback. Pursuing Darnold over retaining Geno makes sense, if it is possible. Adding a young QB via trade or free agency makes sense. Drafting a guy in 2025 should now be a very real possibility, and perhaps the ultimate goal.
We can forget any wild pipe dreams that Mike Florio will dream up about trading for Jalen Hurts or Trevor Lawrence. None of this is happening, and I highly doubt that the Vikings will be willing to part with JJ McCarthy who they traded up for last Spring, and was generating all kinds of positive hype during the preseason in their system before his knee injury. If anything, they will try to sign Darnold to a short extension and see how things play out between the two quarterbacks over the next few years. If Darnold balks at that notion, and they decide to tag and trade him during the Spring, then perhaps Seattle will try to make themselves a trade partner. We shall see.
I also don’t think the team likely views Sam Howell as a potential future starter. Just my vibes on that. There was no competition between him and Geno in camp, and the gulf of talent between them felt vast at practices that I watched. If anything, they might be more inclined to bring Drew Lock back to compete with Geno than open things up for Howell, but that is just my hunch.
At any rate, I feel like now is the time to truly take bites at the quarterback apple in order to find their next long term starter. Personally, if it is not a big move for a guy like Darnold, I would prefer them to look towards the draft, and I don’t care if they draft a guy like Dart or Howard higher than Mel Kiper would have. Draft pundits weren’t wild when Schneider took Russell Wilson in round three in 2012, either, but it would be really good for this organization if they at least begun this process.
Dak Prescott was a fourth round pick, and so was Kirk Cousins. Jalen Hurts was taken late in round two, Russell Wilson in the mid third round pick, and Brock Purdy was famously the last player taken in 2022. I don’t need them to take a quarterback in round one, but I kinda need them to take a quarterback at some point this Spring, pretty please.
Start taking shots at this thing. It’s time.
In Summary
If you have made it this far through this piece, you can see that I am not really stressing about Seattle’s defense much at all these days, and almost all of my needs and wants are centered about the offense. This is what 2024 has shown me about this team.
In Mike Macdonald, I very much trust the direction of this defense. I wouldn’t even be wildly upset if during the draft this Spring that their first round pick went towards another defender, if that was truly the best player available. Adding one more dynamic player to this side of the ball is just going to make a good thing better, and I will not deny my excitement in that notion.
But I need more on offense. I need a better offensive coordinator first and foremost, and I need better results on the offensive line, however they can get it. These two things are musts, in my mind.
Closely behind those is my deepening desire for Seattle to further start the process of getting younger and perhaps more talented at quarterback. I get it that it is an easier said than done sorta request, but I need this process to start this offseason, earnestly.
I also don’t think that sticking longer termed with Geno Smith should be a decision based out of fear of the unknown. He is going to be 35 years old next October, and on a roster filled with decent talent, he has shown the ability to win 9 or 10 games a year and flirt with the playoffs. If we are being truthful, he has been pretty up and down as a starter over the past three years. He can make tight windowed gorgeous throws downfield, for certain, and he is generally pretty accurate with the football, but he can also make boneheaded turnover plays that frustrate. After three years of watching him, rooting for him, I kinda think this is who he is. He is decent, but not great, and he is only going to get older, and possibly more injury prone.
Is that worthy of a $40 million dollar a year deal, or is that money better spent keeping a young nucleus together, adding to it in free agency, and waiting it out for a truly top end quarterback to come around who merits those kind of dollars, or better, is found through the draft?
This is the ultimate question to ask about Seattle and what they have with Geno Smith. You don’t need to be labeled a hater to ask this question. I truly like Geno. If they continue to roll with him, I will continue to root for him, and hope that with a better coordinator, we see better results.
But this is an important question that they have to ask.
In terms of 2025 predictions, I don’t have a ton, but here are a few.
I predict that the Seattle Seahawks will move in a different direction at offensive coordinator and Jake Peetz will be the guy to assumes the position. It will not wow a lot of fans, but I think the organization clearly appreciates the Sean McVay system, and they will take a shot at another McVay guy hoping for much better results than what they got out of Shane Waldren.
I don’t believe we will see a DK Metcalf trade despite the speculation and hype for that to happen. I believe DK likes being a Seattle Seahawk enough, and the front office values his elite athletic traits enough that an extension gets done this offseason with the hope is that better offensive play calling will make the combination of him and Jaxson Smith Njigba even more potent in 2025, and beyond.
I believe they will sign a significant piece to their offseason line in free agency, and they will use this draft that is rich enough with offensive linemen to draft a couple more players. The result will yield at least two new starters on the offensive line in 2025, and my best guess is two new guards with Olu Oluwatimi and possibly Christian Haynes battling for the center spot.
I predict that inevitably some big named players on this team will be cut in order for John Schneider to be active in free agency to improve the offensive line. The most likely players getting cut will be Tyler Lockett, Dre’Mont Jones, George Fant, and probably Roy Robertson Harris. I think there is a chance they value Uchenna Nwosu’s leadership enough along with his pass rush to keep him around on an expensive cap hit for another season, but we will see. I could also see them move off of Noah Fant’s big contract, and possibly Rayshawn Jenkins.
I believe that they will get a big multi year deal done with linebacker Ernest Jones right before the start of free agency similar to the deal they got done at the time with Big Cat Williams last year. Both the player and the team want to see this deal get done, and it will get consummated.
I don’t believe the Vikings will be willing to trade Sam Darnold or JJ McCarthy, and therefore, I think Seattle re-signs Geno Smith to a short extension, and they will continue the process of going year to year with him until they find a younger solution ready to take over. This feels inevitable. Macdonald feels like he truly digs Geno, and I don’t think he is going to be interested in gambling that they can flip Zach Wilson into a serviceable starter.
That said, I also think it is more likely that this is the year they look to the draft to find a quarterback to groom behind Geno. Jaxson Dart could be a player that they like a lot more than maybe some realize. They had a long look at Bo Nix during his pro day in Eugene, and he was an invite to their facilities days before the draft transpired. It is possible that they had a desire to draft him at 16 had he been available there, but we will never know because of Denver. As mentioned, I kinda think Dart has some Nix traits.
Finally, I predict that with a new offensive play caller, we see the offense catch up closer to the defense and Seattle becomes a playoff team in 2025. I think we see better results from Geno, and I predict that Ken Walker will have a career year in his contract year with all the debate around the Seahawks as to whether they should sign him to a big fat juicy contract extension that will surely divide the fanbase.
What is the Seahawk fanbase if they are not sharply divided on something, anyways?
The Seattle Seahawks beating the Chicago Bears on the road on Thursday Night Football by a final score of 6-3 probably doesn’t have you wildly excited as you sip your coffee and read this piece. Well, let me go through the box scores to see if you be aroused.
Geno Smith was 17/23 for 160 yards, 0 TDs, and 0 INTs.
Zach Charbonnet ran 15 times for 57 yards with a 3.8 per carry average.
Little used Kenny McIntosh ran 7 times for 46 yards with a 6.6 per carry average!
Norah Fant had 4 receptions for 43 yards.
DK Metcalf had 3 receptions for 42 yards.
Jaxson Smith Njigba had 3 catches for 32 yards.
Not a lot of offense in this game for the Seattle Seahawks. Turns out that they didn’t need it.
The Seahawk defenders took this game over and held onto it all throughout the game. They sacked Caleb Williams 7 times, stuffed the run, limited passes, and the game ended with a poetic Riq Woolen interception that killed off Chicago’s last chance to pull of the win. They played championship worthy ball even if the offense decided to not show up.
Many fans will look at this game and will probably not be wildly excited about Seattle’s chances against the Rams next week, much less their chances in the playoffs should they get there. I get it. This teams feels incomplete, in many ways, and I don’t need to rehash what I have already said about with the offensive coordinator, the offensive line, and, at times, the erratic quarterback play.
I will just say that I think it is important for Seattle to finish with a winning record in year one of Mike Macdonald’s regime, and with this win in Chicago, we now have that. Good. Finishing strong matters in this league no matter whether a team makes the post season or falls short.
I imagine there will be other Seahawk bloggers and writers who will be less glowing about this win in Chicago than I am. Some will bemoan being 9-7 yet and again and firmly kinda middle of the pack as an NFL franchise.
Personally, I think there are different sorts of middle of the pack teams. There are middle of the pack teams that slide by having a good quarterback and not much less (Chargers). There middle of the pack teams that aren’t bad enough on either side of the ball but nor are they good enough either.
Then there are middle of the pack teams that are good on one side of the ball but not enough on the other. This is where I think Seattle lays in the mid tier of the league. They have what seems to be a very promising defense, but they are a hot mess on offense. I will take being this type of mid level team right now with the hopes that the defense continues to carry into next season with improvement from the offense to follow.
Trends matter in football, and Seattle’s defense has trended very well over the coarse of the season half of the season. They were the sole reason why they managed to win this one.
In all honesty, this uneventful game against the lowly Chicago Bears might be as big of a signature win for Macondald and his team as any all year. This was a game that felt like the Bears could pull off a win, but Seattle’s bad ass defense said NOPE. This matters moving forward. Seattle needs to hang its hat on something, and I think they absolutely can with this defense more and more.
Let us remember that there was a time just two months ago where it felt like Seattle would be lucky to find six wins. Neither their offense nor defense were playing well, and fans began questioning replacing Pete Carroll with Macdonald. People all over the internet were calling Seattle a bad football team, devoid of enough talent to win, and the widespread projections of them were to be the basement dweller of the NFC West.
Then during the second half of the season, Macdonald turned their defense around from being bad to being solid and exciting. If you love good defensive football, you should feel excitement in the direction of this team as we head into 2025, no matter what happens against the Rams next week.
Yes, there will probably be many changes to this team this offseason. I would expect an aggressive upgrading of the offensive line. I think we could see a new offensive coordinator. We will pour over all these needs and wants after their season concludes. Right now, I think it is worth celebrating them getting to 9 wins this year with perhaps a chance to win the division next week.
Instead of lamenting the lackluster nature of Seattle’s offense against Chicago, I would rather celebrate the stellar offensive play of Seattle’s defensive line, linebackers, and secondary. Their best players on Defense took this game over. Devon Witherspoon, Big Cat Williams, Derick Hall, Riq Woolen, and Jarran Reed all played dominant against an inferior opponent.
In fact, the defenders played so elite in this game, that I have to imagine a scenario inside the VMAC earlier in the week where Mike Macdonald asked Ryan Grubb to call a more conservative game plan on offense. Like, he looked at the Chicago tape with Caleb Williams and he knew what his defense was going be dial up in this one.
This is why I am not personally all that stressed out about how Seattle’s offense played. It was a weird Thursday night game on a short week with the numbers down at running back, a gimpy quarterback, and banged up receivers. It was rare that Seattle pushed the ball down field in this one. It felt like they weren’t interested in it, and were hoping short gains would lead to favorable conversions.
While I am sure the team isn’t thrilled to win a boring 6-3 slug fest on Thursday Night Football, I wouldn’t be surprised if they would have looked at a 13-3 win scenario in more glowing terms. This game had that sort of conservative offensive vibe to it, and had Pharoah Brown not gotten the ball stripped out of his hands in the third quarter, it is possible that we would have had a final score more similar to that.
So, take that for what it is worth. It is fair to question if Macdonald has lost faith in Grubb with in this sort of dialed back approach as we witnessed. Maybe he was concerned about whether Geno would put the ball unnecessarily in harms way again.
Or maybe he just looked at the Chicago Bears and felt “yeah, I think we can win this one 9-3.. fuck it, let’s just do that.”
They won’t be able to play this way against the Rams. They will have to open up the offense again. I think they will and that this version of their offense is a mirage. They suddenly didn’t forget how to pass the football. They just chose to be close vested about it in this slop vest.
The good news is that they will have ten days of rest and the Rams will be less rested. If the Cardinals beat the Rams on Saturday night, this one in LA next week will be for all the NFC West marbles and the division title. This is exactly what football is all about.
So, while folks can point to Seattle having a losing record at home this year, their road record has been stellar thus far. While we can bemoan the inconsistencies of the Seahawk offense, it feels like their defense is building towards a style that can be championship worthy around the corner.
Generally speaking, I am happy with what is trending with this team. I know a lot of work needs to be done, but it feels mostly isolated with the offense. One aggressive offseason fixing this offense line could be enough to make this team a contender next year. I fully believe that.
Am I crazy?
Sure! I might be.
But this is what being a fan is all about. You have to be made of thick layers of fan fiber to watch your team play a good old fashioned slobberknocker like this on Thursday night and feel good about them afterwards, and I feel kinda great about them, honestly.
Now, I just need to be the biggest Kyler Murray fan on the planet on Saturday Night.
Through fifteen games this year, I have seen enough of the Seattle Seahawks under Mike Macdonald to know who and what they are. In many ways, I see a talented football team, not too far from the talented teams that have just beaten them in the last two weeks, and not really much less talented than the NFC West leading Los Angeles Rams.
They are rich at the skilled positions on offense. Jaxon Smith Njigba is an ascending star in this league. Ken Walker and DK Metcalf offer elite physical talents even if they are not wholly consistent as players. Zach Charbonnet, Tyler Lockett, Noah Fant, and maybe now even AJ Barner could probably flourish in several offenses in the league.
They have depth and talent on their defensive line. Their defensive tackles are stout run stoppers and they can rush the quarterback. Boye Mafe and Derick Hall can be pro bowl edge rushers together for years.
They have a good middle linebacker and talent in their secondary.
They have a capable veteran quarterback who can win them games, as he almost did it yesterday against a very good Viking defense.
They need to build up the interior of their offensive line this offseason. It is an absolute must. This, you would think, should be the priority number one for this team moving forward.
Or is it?
Hm..
Well, let me say that, as I sat through this game against the Vikings at Lumen Field watching Seattle drop yet another close winnable game, I reached a definitive conclusion about what is preventing these Seahawks from actually becoming the Vikings, Packers, and Rams. I don’t believe they have a quality NFL offensive coordinator, and I am now more than ready to move on from Ryan Grubb.
These are my feelings today, and they can certainly change if they go out on the road on Thursday Night Football and smoke the Bears in Chicago with an efficient offensive outing, and then they march down into LA on the following week, and upset the Rams on their home field in a similar manner. If this happens, I will probably fall victim to a blinding recency bias, and believe that Grubb is the man to continue with.
Right now, however, I do not believe he is the guy to pair with Mike Macdonald and his defense. I do not feel Grubb is up to coaching quality NFL offensive football. It isn’t just about a problematic offensive and erratic quarterback play. Too often we see receivers lining up illegally, and other piss poor procedures. They are a sloppy lot that oozes with talent, but they cannot consistently put it together, and I think that is solely a reflection of Ryan Grubb. Lack of sound fundamental details is a coaching issue.
But that is not the worst of it for me.
Grubb’s approach to the run game is killing my soul as a diehard Seattle Seahawk fan who knows full well the long traditional history of this being a running team in the scenic Pacific Northwest. They ran the snot out of the ball under a decade and a half of Pete Carroll, they ran it hard under pass happy Mike Holmgren, and in the 1980’s they were coached by a dude nicknamed Ground Chuck.
Seattle Seahawk football is about running the holy snot out of the football. This is who and what we are as a people as much as it is that people in Southern California surf, people in Russia drink vodka, and people in Canada drink beer and ice fish. People in the PNW watch run centric football. This is our birthright, and Ryan Grubb is pissing all over it.
When Mike Macdonald was hired last winter, the first thing he said when asked about what his vision was for this team was that he said he wants a tough program that plays hard, and runs the football. So, excuse me if I feel like Ryan Grubb is perhaps now the only person in the Pacific Northwest who doesn’t understand what this current head coach wants, and what the tradition of this team is all about.
I will also just say this again. I don’t want to hear another utterance about what their offensive line is right now, so zip it around me, they actually played surprisingly decent enough against a dominant Vikings defensive front. They just needed to, yet again, run the ball more.
If you have Ken Walker and Zach Charbonnet in your backfield, and you cannot figure out ways to consistently and properly utilize their talents as running backs, then you do not belong coaching in this league, period. If Grubb cannot commit to this, he should go back to college and coach in the Big 12 where coordinators make millions of dollars chucking it all over the place against soft college defenses.
Running the football takes a commitment to it, and the easiest way to build consistency on even a porous offensive line is to get the five so-so guys building chemistry run blocking together. Find something you do well, and do it over and over again out of different formations that disguise it. Once you master that, add a new wrinkle, and then you got a couple fun cords to play a decent Ramones song on your guitar with. It is not rocket science, but it takes fucking discipline, and determination.
It is literally that simple. The more you run, the better your offensive line grows together, blocks together, and the more balanced and cohesive your offense then becomes. Simple as pie, and I honestly now miss the good old Schotty days of Seahawk football four years ago.
Let us just look at this Minnesota team that just came into Lumen Field and beat us.
The Minnesota Vikings are 13-2 right now, and they are playing without their starting left tackle, have similar pass blocking issues as Seattle does (it showed in this game, by the way), and yet Kevin O’Connell is very committed to his running attack (even if it is not prolific), and building play action off of it that Sam Darnold is executing at an impressive rate. He has paired this offensive approach with the wonders that Brian Flores is doing with their aggressive defense. Imagine what Seattle could be right now if Mike Macdonald was paired with a similar offensive mind.
Could Grubb morph into a similar play-caller?
Sure, I guess he could. I guess that I could also be discovered by a Hollywood filmmaker while I am mowing a parking strip, end up in the next Jurassic World movie being chased by a gigantic Allosaurus Maximus, but I am not going to hold my breath on that.
I think in his heart, Grubb would love to play call for vintage Payton Manning and Marvin Harrison and that stellar offensive line Manning had to work with in Indy. Grubb just lives for shotgun plays with loads of drop back passing, and just enough run to keep defenders honest.
As you step back and really take a big long look at this animal, it really is a stupid beast to look at, don’t you think?
The problem is that Geno Smith (bless his heart) is not Payton Manning, and this offensive line is not anything close to being geared towards pass blocking in that sort of chuck it all over the place scheme. Laken Tomlinson, Olu Oluwatimi, and Sataoa Laumea are all run blockers suited for run centric schemes. Geno Smith is, in many ways, an ideal play action quarterback.
If you want to run a Kevin Stefanski or Kyle Shanahan run centric offense, Geno is probably a very capable quarterback to game manage those sort of attacks, guiding his team towards the playoffs. If Seattle did move on from Geno in the offseason, and he ended up in Cleveland playing for Stefanski, I would honestly not be surprised if we saw them become a pretty decent playoff contending team there again.
But Grubb does not seem to have any designs to do any of this.
When he does start games with a run and play action approach, and it is effective, as was the case in this one, he quickly abandons the approach in the following series to dial up drop back shotgun passes. It is mind numbing how often this scenario has occurred this season.
This has happened far too often this season, and far too often, the results end in a three and out series that kills away any momentum previously gained by the offense. Far too often this places more pressure on Geno Smith to be perfect on the next series once the defense has sorta figured out what is coming. Honestly, it is not fair what he has been doing to Geno Smith.
Seattle had one game this year in Arizona a couple weeks back where they leaned into the run, stayed consistently with it, and Geno wonderfully game managed, and as a result, they played perfectly complimentary ball with their defense. After that game, it felt like Grubb had finally graduated into being a proper NFL coordinator, but then that ass-hatted game against Green Bay happened, and then this game was pissed away at home against the Vikings.
So, I am really kinda done with Ryan Grubb. Sorry Husky Fan person who thinks I am not giving him a fair shake, but I want Seattle to have an offensive approach that pairs well with a promising defense. I just do. That is what I am ready for moving in the 2025 offseason as it now feels more unlikely that Seattle will see the playoffs.
I fully get it if you want to blame Geno Smith for the terrible interception in the first half that led to Minnesota points, and the interception at the end that effectively killed any chance of a miracle come from behind finish. I will see that, and add that he also threw two other balls that should have been picked, and he could have easily had four interceptions on the afternoon, and we could have seen a more lopsided loss in result. Geno also took a terrible sack that brought us out of much needed field goal range in the closing minutes that could have tied the game and brought us to overtime. I will also just say, again, that I don’t think he was helped by Grubb’s play calling nearly enough as he should have been.
You can also blame DK Metcalf for a poorly ran route that led to Geno’s final INT. I will give you that. Seeing it live, it looked like Geno threw a dumbass pass into double coverage, but the replays I watched afterwards showed what was supposed to be a simple corner route to the sideline that DK decided not to break off on, for some inexplicable reason. Who the fuck even knows what that was about, maybe it is a sign of him growing frustrated in the offense and maybe no longer being the favored target with JSN coming on, but maybe you could also ask the question as to why JSN or Lockett wasn’t running that pattern in the first place.
You could also blame Byron Murphy for inadvertently grabbing Sam Darnold’s face mask on a sack that gave the Vikings new life during their go ahead drive. Sure, maybe that was a rookie mistake, but I feel like next year, perhaps with more NFL savvy, he makes the sack without grabbing the mask. So, really, lay off of Murphy for Christ’s sake.
You can blame Tre Brown for lining up offsides as a corner, which I don’t believe that I have even seen before in a game. WTF????
Speaking of cornerbacks, you can most certainly blame Riq Woolen for giving up the big time go ahead touchdown thrown to Justin Jefferson (although it sounds like he was expecting better help from the safety in a cover two look). There are some justified concerns about Woolen regressing that I think are warranted, and news that he was benched at the top of the game for breaking team rules doesn’t help his imagine these days. It is all currently a shame because he is such a physical talent, but at the end of the day, Seattle needs dependable players at key positions and not players oozing with potential but not living up to any of it enough.
So, yeah, there was a lot of slop in this game, and I suppose there will be those who will point directly towards rookie head coach Macdonald as the one chiefly responsible for it all. Go ahead and point there, if you need to do it. He is the head coach and ultimately the one in charge of the whole inconsistent ship.
But at the end of the day, I don’t know how any fan looks at this game, and the game a month ago against the Rams, the game last week against the Pack, and the gawd awful game against the Giants in early October, and not think that Ryan Grubb out thought common sense for the sake of throwing the mother fudging football. I just don’t.
So, yeah, maybe there are changes coming to this roster this offseason. Maybe Woolen isn’t a fit for what Macdonald needs at cornerback in his defense. Maybe DK could get dealt. Maybe they do move on from Geno Smith, instead of extending, and maybe the very quarterback we just saw play against them comes to Seattle through free agency this Spring and takes over.
None of any of this will matter, in my opinion, until they fix the offensive play-calling, and they invest more into the offensive line.
But really, fix the fudge-nugget-ed mother-fudging fudge-mudging play-calling.
Drafting a good offensive guard in round one next Spring, and signing a pro bowl center in free agency will not alleviate my concerns about this offense if the theme continues to be a pass happy Grubb offense in 2025. Unless Geno Smith suddenly does turn into Tom Brady or Peyton Manning next Fall, I would be bracing for more frustration as a Seahawk fan if this approach continues on.
So, please, Seattle. Don’t make me brace for that.
These are my thoughts, and feels. It is a shame that Seattle did not seize the day and pull off this upset win. Now, in order to make the playoffs, they will need to win in Chicago, have the Rams lose to the Cardinals this weekend, and then they will have to beat the Rams in ten days. It is what it is.
That said, merry Christmas, onto Chicago, and go Hawks!
12th Life 