Year 1 under new head coach Mike Macdonald was a turbulent one for the Seattle Seahawks. Coming in Macdonald had to assemble his first staff on the fly and then get ready for his first season coaching at this level of the game. It’s not an easy task, and Macdonald did about as well as anyone could reasonably expect from a rookie NFL coach.
The results were not quite what we were hoping for – but not too far off, either. We predicted an 11-6 record in the regular season and would have been right if not for an inexcusable loss to the atrocious New York Giants at home in Week 5. However, we also predicted they’d make the NFC Championship and Ryan Grubb would win Assistant Coach of the Year and clearly we were way off on both of those takes.
Overall, it’s clear that this team is largely still in the same spot they were the last several years under former head coach Pete Carroll. That is to say they’re not a bad team by any means, but they’re also nowhere near ready to compete for a Super Bowl.
As the season comes to a close, each team has earned a grade for the year from Maurice Moton at Bleacher Report. The Seahawks came in with an uninspiring C+.
B/R on grading 2024 Seahawks C+
“The Seahawks likely feel a lingering sting from a head-scratching 29-20 Week 5 home loss to the New York Giants. They also thought the offense underperformed, which led to the dismissal of first-time offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. The Seahawks should be encouraged by the direction that head coach Mike Macdonald has set, but new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak must optimize the playmakers in a loaded offense that features DK Metcalf, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Tyler Lockett, Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet.”
Going into the season we were confident Macdonald would get the defense playing at a much higher level – and apart from some issues against the run in the middle third of the season that was right.
However, the biggest x-factor for how well this team was going to do was the offensive line. Specifically, could it improve and become at least a mediocre-level unit, or would it continue to flounder? If so, could offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb find a way to work around that after getting to work with one of the nation’s best offensive lines at UW?
The answer to that question was a resounding no, which resulted in a badly-imblanced offensive attack which put far too much pressure on Geno Smith. He wound up taking a carrer-high 50 sacks despite being one of the game’s best quarterbacks at dealing with pressure.
That dynamic plus a woefully lacking run game turned Seattle’s offense into an average unit on its best days, which is far short of the potential this group has given their talent at the skill positions.
Looking ahead, the best way for the Seahawks to improve on that C+ grade for the season is to improve that offensive line. The best path there is likely to spend a bit in free agency for some proven blockers, because this team’s history of drafting interior linemen is atrocious.
Upgrades at left guard, center and right guard have to be part of the equation, but they will also need new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to do a better job of scheming around what’s likely to still be a below-average unit up front.
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