For the fourth time in franchise history, the Seattle Seahawks have secured the number one seed in the NFC. All previous one-seed seasons (2005, 2013, 2014) have led the Seahawks to appear in the Super Bowl.
The team won the number one seed and the NFC West in dominating fashion over Christian McCaffrey and the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday in a 13-3 win. Seattle’s defense was suffocating, as the 49ers mustered only 173 yards of offense.
On Saturday, the Seahawks showed why they are confident in their potential Super Bowl run due to their defense. According to Brian Nemhauser of Hawk Blogger on Twitter, the Seahawks are going to finish the regular season as the number one-ranked defense in DVOA in the NFL.
Their toughness and physicality were on full display, reflecting their head coach, Mike Macdonald, and the culture he has instilled.
Building a Winning Culture
When Mike Macdonald took over as the Seahawks’ head coach in 2024, he was following the footsteps of the greatest coach in Seahawks history, Pete Carroll. The Seahawks, though, had become a team perpetually on the verge of the playoffs or an early-round exit, and they needed a new voice to try to ascend to the next level.
In his first season as head coach, Macdonald finished 10-7, but the Seahawks missed the playoffs. However, during that season, they established something invaluable to the team this year: A winning culture.
The Seahawks finished the season 4-1, and that has carried over into this season and is a significant reason why the Seahawks have the one seed, a bye week, and homefield advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.
Seahawks star linebacker Ernest Jones IV credited Macdonald with being the reason the Seahawks are in the advantageous position they are in. Seahawks.com provided the transcript of Jones’ praise of Macdonald.
“We’re here today as number one seed because of Mike. Not just the way he calls it, but the community that he’s building in that locker room,” Jones said. “We play for each other. We fight for each other. I’ve said this before, we got here to this point, and it started last year. It started through those ups and downs that we had last year when I came here. It started then, and we were able to pick it up this year and just keep rolling.”
The culture Macdonald has established with the Seahawks has brought the team together and made it for them to come to work.
Fun to Go to Work
Throughout the season, Mike Macdonald has been laser-focused on dealing with each game as it comes, rather than looking too far ahead. Still, now that the regular season has come to an end, and the Seahawks have accomplished their regular-season goals, Macdonald is more willing to self-reflect on the season.
Following the Seahawks’ win over the 49ers, Macdonald, at his post-game press conference, discussed taking pride in what the team has accomplished this season. Seahawks.com had Macdonald’s reflections.
“I‘m really proud of our team. You can hear them in there—they love each other, man. It’s so much fun to go to work every day and to coach this team,” Macdonald said. “It’s an absolute honor to coach these guys. I just talked to AD on the plane. I was like, ‘I don’t want this to end.‘ Ultimately, the season’s going to end at some point, but I just want to keep going. I want to do whatever this is. Every day has been a massive blessing, and I love these guys.”
The Seahawks are in a prime position to win their third Super Bowl in franchise history, and if the team does, Mike Macdonald and the ecosystem of winning he’s built will be the culprits.
Ernest Jones IV says Seahawks Success is Due to Mike Macdonald’s Team Culture