John Schneider's football journey has come full circle - and then some.
Now the architect behind the NFC Champion Seattle Seahawks, Schneider is headed back to the Super Bowl, this time with a roster that looks nothing like the ones he built in the early 2010s. But what many fans might not remember is that long before he was building dynasties in the Pacific Northwest, Schneider had a brief but intriguing stint in Washington.
Back in 2001, after a short run as the Chiefs’ director of pro personnel under Marty Schottenheimer, Schneider followed Schottenheimer to Washington. Schottenheimer had just been hired as head coach and de facto GM by then-owner Daniel Snyder, and he brought Schneider on board as his vice president of player personnel.
It was a tough situation from the jump. Schottenheimer inherited a roster weighed down by bloated contracts and questionable spending decisions.
The front office made the call to clean house, eat some cap hits, and reset. The result?
A rocky 0-5 start that turned into a respectable 8-8 finish - a sign that things were stabilizing.
But stability wasn’t exactly Snyder’s calling card.
Despite the late-season turnaround, Snyder pulled the plug. Both Schottenheimer and Schneider were out after just one season.
In their place came Steve Spurrier and Vinny Cerrato, and Washington’s trajectory took a sharp downward turn. Meanwhile, Schottenheimer landed in San Diego and turned the Chargers into a consistent winner.
Schneider? He wasn’t out of work for long either.
The Green Bay Packers scooped him up in 2002, where he rose to become the director of football operations. Over the next eight years, he helped shape one of the league’s most consistently competitive rosters.
Then came the big move in 2010: Schneider took over as general manager in Seattle. What followed was one of the most impressive team-building runs in recent memory.
He drafted foundational stars like Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor, Richard Sherman, Bobby Wagner, Russell Okung, and Russell Wilson. That core led the Seahawks to back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, including a dominant win in 2013 and a heartbreaking loss the following year.
Fast forward to the 2022-2024 seasons. Seattle had retooled around quarterback Geno Smith and remained competitive, but three straight seasons of 9-8, 9-8, and 10-7 finishes weren’t enough.
Schneider knew it was time to shake things up. He signed Sam Darnold in free agency - a bold move that many questioned at the time - and it paid off.
The Seahawks surged to a 14-3 record this season and punched their ticket to Super Bowl LX.
And that’s not all. After parting ways with Pete Carroll following the 2023 season, Schneider led the charge to hire Mike Macdonald as head coach - another decision that looks like a home run.
Now, Schneider has made NFL history. He’s the first general manager to take two completely different rosters - with zero overlapping players - to the Super Bowl. That’s a testament to not just longevity, but adaptability, vision, and elite talent evaluation.
Oh, and he’s only 54 years old.
It’s hard not to look back and wonder what might have been in Washington. When Daniel Snyder let Schneider go at just 30, it closed the door on what could’ve been a transformative era for the franchise. Instead, that door opened in Seattle - and it’s led to another Super Bowl run.
For Seahawks fans, Schneider’s legacy is already cemented. For Washington fans, it’s just another chapter in the long list of "what-ifs."