Schefter: How Mike Macdonald surprised by picking Seattle Seahawks

New Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald was one of the NFL’s hottest commodities this offseason, and he turned away other desitinations to come to Seattle.

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With the Baltimore Ravens last season, Macdonald led a defense that surrendered the fewest points in the NFL and wreaked havoc in the backfield with the league’s most sacks. It was an impressive feat for a 36 year old in just his second season as an NFL coordinator, and one that led to him being on the top of the board for many teams searching for a new head coach this offseason.

ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter said he was surprised that Macdonald chose the Seahawks over other teams in the coaching hunt. Schefter, who recently had Macdonald on his podcast, explained why he was surprised and why the coach chose Seattle when he joined Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob on Wednesday.

“He’s an impressive guy and he’s somebody that commands respect,” Schefter said. “He’s somebody that essentially was going to get a head coaching job. He was in play in Carolina, in Tennessee, in Washington.”

What surprised Schefter

Macdonald’s decision to sign with the Seahawks meant he chose to come to the team that had the best record last season of those searching for coaches. However, Schefter pointed out there was another team interested in Macdonald that he had a personal tie to.

Macdonald’s wife, Stephanie Macdonald, was a cheerleader for three teams over eight NFL seasons, and one of those stops came with the Commanders. She’s also from the Washington, D.C. area, according the Schefter.

“I was a little surprised, frankly – and we talked a little bit about it – that he wound up taking the Seattle job,” Schefter said. “… They didn’t really have any ties to this particular area, but yet they felt compelled to go out and choose the Seahawks.”

Why Macdonald chose Seahawks

So why exactly did Macdonald, who hails from the East Coast himself, decide to move to the Pacific Northwest and coach the Seahawks? General manager/president of football operations John Schneider had some major pull.

“We talked a little bit about that and the reason he did that was because he believed strongly in the general manager, John Schneider,” Schefter said. “It’s kind of amazing that somebody could uproot his life, his family’s life, in large part due to his conviction for the general manager, but that’s how strongly he felt about John Schneider and the job that he’s done there in Seattle. … Mike really believes in him and now we’ll see those two guys get to work and try to make this team better.”

Listen to the full conversation with ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Wyman and Bob weekdays from 2-6 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

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