Week 1 gave the Seahawks something bigger than a clean win: it put Mike Macdonald’s coaching style on display.
That was the clearest contrast in the league’s opening weekend. While Sean Payton and the Broncos stumbled badly in a 31-10 loss to the Chiefs, I kept coming back to Seth Wickersham’s deep dive on Payton’s 16-hour days and to the way Macdonald has operated in Seattle over two seasons by doing nearly the opposite.
He leans on his assistants. He builds trust.
He gets the job done without turning the office into a badge of honor.
A month after Wickersham’s piece ran, Macdonald spelled that out plainly to Dan Patrick.
“I tell the team, if I’m making decisions after 9 p.m., we’re in trouble,” Macdonald said to Patrick.
Week 1 felt like a referendum on offseason preparation, especially in a league where starters barely see the preseason anymore. Plenty of teams entered the year with big expectations and fell flat.
The Texans’ defense, splashed across Sports Illustrated’s preview cover, got carved up for 409 yards and 36 points by the Bills. The Rams’ coronation hit pause.
Seattle, meanwhile, handled last season’s MVP runner-up with a defense that was missing bodies and still produced. The Seahawks had a safety elevated from the practice squad and a cornerback with just one career start, and then their quarterback, who took every meaningful snap last year, got hurt on the opening drive.
That kind of early-season resilience has become a Macdonald calling card. Rodney Thomas, Nehemiah Pritchett and Drew Lock stepping up against the Patriots fit right into a growing pattern. So do players like Tyrice Knight, Drake Thomas and Ty Okada, names that might not ring bells outside their own homes but have become fixtures on a defense that keeps playing at a high level.
Week 1 also sharpened the picture of what Macdonald is not: Sean McVay.
The Seahawks coach seems to sweat every detail, and the organization clearly values all 70 players on the roster. Cooper Kupp’s comments on “Hard Knocks” hinted at that being more of an afterthought for McVay, and special teams again looked like a weak point for the Rams, just as it did for much of last season despite McVay’s offseason insistence that a 2-point conversion had unfairly defined them.
There were also a couple of coaches who earned real credit for the way they set the tone in their openers.
Mike LaFleur’s Cardinals may not be a Super Bowl team, but they looked like a competent club moving in the right direction for the first time in over a decade. The coverage from our sister outlet, Arizona Sports, made clear that LaFleur’s authenticity and offensive feel have been a welcome change after the uninspiring Gannon and Kingsbury eras.
Klint Kubiak, the first branch off Macdonald’s coaching tree, also made a strong first impression. In his debut as a head coach, he put together an offensive masterclass even without Brock Bowers. He kept finding ways to put Ashton Jeanty in favorable spots, and the bigger questions around Kubiak - whether he could handle the whole operation and win over a locker room - suddenly look a lot less daunting.
Not everyone opened the season that smoothly.
Sean McVay landed on the wrong end of the weekend’s biggest coaching faceplant. The Rams’ trip to Australia and the 17-hour time difference set up a tough assignment, but the performance against the 49ers was still a mess.
McVay eventually waved the white flag with more than four minutes left and inserted rookie Stetson Bennett at quarterback. That wasn’t the launch anyone had in mind after the preseason hype that had already handed the Rams the Super Bowl crown.
Matt LaFleur had a familiar kind of collapse, too. The Packers led late, then watched the Vikings pour in 22 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. Green Bay managed only a third-quarter field goal after halftime, and that was the extent of its offense the rest of the way.
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Three Former Seahawks Are Still Waiting For Their Next Chance
As the new NFL season begins, three familiar names tied to Seattle are still on the open market. Will Dissly, Tyler Lockett and Bobby Wagner are all unsigned right now, a reminder of how quickly even established veterans can find themselves in an uncertain spot once roster cuts and cap decisions settle in. Each left a different mark on the Seahawks, and each has a recent team story that helps explain why the next step has not come as quickly as expected.
Dissly was released by the Chargers after a failed physical, though he is now healthy. Lockett moved on from the Titans and joined the Raiders, only to wind up without a roster spot as the season approached. Wagner, meanwhile, was cut by Seattle in a salary-cap move, making his current status especially notable for a player who long defined the middle of the Seahawks defense. None of the three has landed yet, but with experience and proven production on their side, it would not be a surprise if their waiting ends before long. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Just Got A Crucial Sam Darnold Timeline Update
Sam Darnolds glute injury has already put the Seahawks into an early-season adjustment, and the initial timeline gives Seattle at least one more week to plan without its presumed starter. He is expected to miss Week 2 against the Cardinals, with Week 3 against the Commanders still very much in play as a possibility, which means the Seahawks are working through the kind of quarterback uncertainty that can shape the first month of a season.
Ian Rapoports update at least gave Seattle a clearer frame on the wait, suggesting Darnold could be back as soon as Week 3 and might miss only one or two games. In the meantime, Drew Locks strong showing in Week 1 bought the Seahawks some breathing room, but the bigger question now is how long the team has to keep that backup momentum going before it can hand the offense back to Darnold. [Read more 🡒]
Kenneth Walker's Chiefs Debut Gave Seahawks Fans Mixed Feelings
Kenneth Walkers first game in a Chiefs uniform gave Seattle fans plenty to process. After leaving the Seahawks in the offseason, the former Seattle back made an immediate impression in Kansas City, piling up 173 rushing yards on 23 carries and adding three catches for 18 yards. It was the kind of debut that reminded everyone in Seattle just how much burst and balance Walker brought to the backfield during the Seahawks Super Bowl-winning run last season.
For Seahawks fans, the reaction was bound to be mixed. There was satisfaction in seeing a former title contributor land in a prominent role with another contender, but there was also the familiar sting of watching him thrive somewhere else so quickly. Playing alongside Patrick Mahomes, Walker set a rushing standard for a back in that offense right away, and it only sharpened the question of what Seattle will miss most after his departure. [Read more 🡒]