The Seattle Seahawks are making a change official just days before their NFL playoff matchup against the San Francisco 49ers. It is a change not expected to impact the Seahawks’ chances against the Niners as the team has been operating without running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu since December.
Polamalu took a leave of absence in December, and it appears the Seahawks are officially parting ways with the running backs coach, per KPRC2 Houston’s Aaron Wilson.
“Seahawks and running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu have parted ways at this time after previous leave of absence, per NFL source,” Wilson detailed in a January 13, 2026, message on X.
The Seahawks did not reveal the reason for Polamalu’s absence or the eventual split. It is also unclear when the decision was made.
Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald previously announced that assistants Justin Outten and Michael Byrne would be splitting the coaching duties during Polamalu’s absence. It is expected that the Seahawks will operate under the same structure moving forward, but the change is now permanent for the rest of the season.
Here’s what you need to know about the latest Seahawks news and rumors ahead of the team’s showdown against the 49ers.
49ers vs. Seahawks: San Francisco’s Rushing Defense Has Struggled This Season
Seattle’s rushing attack has not shown any negative effects amid Polamalu’s absence. Ken Walker posted 16 carries for 97 yards against the 49ers in the team’s last outing. Zach Charbonnet added 17 carries for 74 yards and one touchdown as well.
The Seahawks are hoping to once again take advantage of a Niners rushing defense that has been suspect this season. San Francisco allowed 140 rushing yards to the Philadelphia Eagles in the wild card matchup. This ranked the 49ers defense No. 9 out of the 12 teams who played during Wild Card Weekend.
The Seahawks Are Coming Off a Bye While the 49ers Travel to Seattle on a Short Week
It is a tale of two different teams in this NFC West divisional round matchup. Seattle enters rested following a bye week during the wild card matchups.
San Francisco will once again take on the Seahawks on another short week. The Niners played on Sunday in Philadelphia and will travel to Seattle to play the Seahawks on Saturday, January 17. Macdonald is hoping that the layoff will not impact the Seahawks’ play against the 49ers.
“It’s kind of the million-dollar question, right?” Macdonald said of the extended time off, per Seahawks.com. “How much do you rest? I thought we felt like we tried to keep it on cadence as much as possible in terms of what their body rhythm would be. And then just trust the guys that they were still going to take care of their bodies and get the proper amount of rest over those three days.
“We’ve had some longer weeks throughout the year where we’ve been pretty work intensive and I felt like it was just kind of like mentally draining for us. I think we’ve proved to ourselves we can, in a week’s time, put together a great plan and get ready to play a game. And so we wanted to keep that cadence as close as possible.”
Seahawks Abruptly Cut Ties With Coach Days Before NFL Playoff Game vs. 49ers