When the Seahawks take the field Wednesday night against the Patriots, Sam Darnold will wear the captain’s label for that game. Next week, it could be somebody else.
That’s how Mike Macdonald wants it. The Seahawks coach continues to treat captaincy as a week-to-week honor instead of a season-long assignment with the familiar “C” stitched on the jersey. It’s the same approach he used in his first two seasons in Seattle, and it’s carrying into this year as well.
For Week 1, Darnold will be joined by linebacker Ernest Jones IV, fullback Brady Russell and defensive tackle Leonard Williams as the team’s captains against New England.
Macdonald explained early in the 2024 season, his first as a head coach, that the idea is to make the designation a form of recognition rather than a permanent role.
“It’s a combination of guys who are doing a great job, guys who are trying to build up and give an opportunity to have a voice with the rest of the team, guys you want to recognize that deserve an opportunity to do those things,” Macdonald said. “So, that’s really the thought behind it.
It’s pretty much that simple. The guys know who the leaders are.
You don’t need the title to be the leader of the team. But it’s important to build everybody else up. . . .
There’s nothing formal about it. It’s just more of a recognition type thing.
Just, ‘Hey, shout out to these guys that are operating the right way, playing the right way, preparing the right way.’”
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