Macdonald previews Seahawks’ Monday night showdown in Detroit

Mike Macdonald and the new-look Seattle Seahawks are starting to gain some national attention after their 3-0 start.

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ESPN moved up the Seahawks up to No. 4 in its power rankings. Pete Prisco of CBS Sports also has them at No. 4 in his power rankings. Bleacher Report slots them at No. 7 in its power rankings. And ESPN NFL analyst Marcus Spears heaped praise on the 37-year-old Macdonald, saying he’s been “phenomenal.”

How do Macdonald and the Seahawks keep outside noise from being a distraction?

“It’s easy for us, because we don’t hear it,” Macdonald told Steve Raible during Friday morning’s Mike Macdonald Preview on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM. “We’re in the building all the time. So I mean, it’s great, but the tape tells you everything you need to know.

“The tape’s telling us right now that we do a lot of a lot of great things and our guys are playing really hard and we should be proud of the foundation that we’re building. But the tape also tells you that we’re not even close to where we need to be as a football team. And that’s OK. But it also means we have to keep growing and keep getting better. It’s a race early in the season to get better.”

After a relatively underwhelming opening three-game slate against the Denver Broncos, New England Patriots and the injury-depleted Miami Dolphins, the Seahawks hit the road for their first big test of the season Monday night against the Detroit Lions.

After reaching the NFC Championship Game last season, the Lions are off to a 2-1 start this year and are a popular pick to reach the Super Bowl.

“You treat every game the same in terms your approach, your process, what you do on each day,” Macdonald said. “… But yeah, it’s just a great opportunity to go against a really good team and a really great, loud, electric environment and let the chips go fly out there.”

Sizing up the Lions

Detroit’s offense figures to be among the league’s best again this season after ranking fifth in scoring last year. The Lions have a balanced attack that features a strong offensive line, experienced quarterback Jared Goff, the one-two backfield punch of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs and a trio of receiving weapons in Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and tight end Sam LaPorta.

“It’s a well-rounded group,” Macdonald said. “They run and throw the ball efficiently and create explosives, and they’re committed to running the football. It’s a great scheme. It’s very well thought out. They have scheme diversity, (along with) things that they can hang their hat on in certain situations. They have a great knack for giving you a curveball that you might not have expected or seen on tape. And then they have great players to kind of round the whole thing out.”

On the other side of the ball, Detroit’s defense ranks ninth in the league with just 17.7 points allowed per game. It all starts up front with fearsome pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who leads the NFL with both 6.5 sacks and six tackles for loss.

“They’re a tough unit, they’re together (and) there’s not a lot of space out there, so you’re going to have to make it,” Macdonald said. “And the way they match things and how they use Aidan and different things like that, it’s very well thought out (and) well coached.”

Listen to the full conversation with Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald at this link.

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