Unlike last year, Seahawks’ defense now gets to ‘just play fast’

RENTON – This time last year, the Seattle Seahawks were still in the early stages of installing new head coach Mike Macdonald’s cutting-edge defensive scheme.

Notes and observations from Seahawks’ first open OTA practice

In other words, they had only just begun the process of navigating a pretty substantial learning curve.

It’s a much different situation this time around.

After evolving into one of the league’s top units over the second half of last season, Seattle’s defense is hitting the ground running as it enters Year 2 of the Macdonald era. The Seahawks return nearly every key defensive contributor from last year’s second-half surge, and their grasp of Macdonald’s system is night and day from where it was 12 months ago.

“When we came in at first, it’s a big playbook, so it’s a lot to learn,” veteran Seahawks defensive tackle Jarran Reed said Monday after the team’s fourth OTA practice of the spring. “And I think that now, just banking off of last year… it’s like reading the same book over and over again.

“And so now, we get to go out on the field and just play fast.”

Showing up and showing out. pic.twitter.com/3MKj5Y6Fv8

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) May 31, 2025

Over the first half of last season, Seattle’s defense struggled through some major growing pains. But with a few midseason personnel changes, a return to health from several key players and a growing sense of confidence and trust in Macdonald’s system, the unit quickly grew into one of the league’s best.

Between Weeks 10 and 18, the Seahawks ranked fifth in scoring defense (18.4 points allowed per game), tied for third in actual scoring defense (17.5 points allowed per game, excluding opponents’ non-offensive scores) and fourth in total yardage allowed per game (304.8).

Now, they can essentially pick up where they left off.

The Seahawks return 13 of their top 14 players in defensive snaps logged over the final eight weeks of last season – including each of their top 11 players over that span. In addition, they bolstered that returning group with four-time Pro Bowl defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence in free agency and ultra-athletic safety Nick Emmanwori in the second round of the NFL Draft.

That level of continuity breeds trust – a vital trait in any defense.

“(Early on last season), everybody was just trying to learn what to do,” Reed said. “Everybody was kind of out there (just) doing their job. So now, we can go out there and do our job, but we can do it together, just as far as knowing the plays.

“We can know where this person’s supposed to be, or expect what this person is gonna do, and we can just trust it and play with it.”

‘A stronger foundation’

Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde said the team is still going through the process of reinstalling the defensive scheme, but noted that process is clearly different this time around.

“No matter what foundation you’ve built, you have to go back to square one, reteach it and build it up again,” Durde said. “(But) we’ve got a stronger foundation this time.

“Last year, we were doing it from brand new. But now, we’re building on the same thing. So now it allows you to (build more) connection, and then we can teach some of the whys within the plays.”

Instead of just trying to grasp the basics, they can gain a more advanced understanding of the system.

“We’re just building on what we did last year,” Seahawks standout cornerback Devon Witherspoon said. “We know the playbook now, so now we just add our own little flavor to it.”

With some extra spice, could the Seahawks’ 2025 defense potentially even exceed the top-five level the unit reached over the second half of 2024?

After all, that would follow the same path Macdonald’s defense took during his stint as the Baltimore Ravens’ defensive coordinator in 2022 and 2023.

Macdonald’s Year 1 in Baltimore was strikingly similar to his Year 1 in Seattle – a below-average defense over the first half of the season, followed by a top-tier unit over the second half. And Macdonald’s Year 2 in Baltimore? The Ravens were the top-ranked defense in the league.

Reed thinks the Seahawks are capable of that this fall.

“We want to be number one,” Reed said. “We want to be number one in every category. That’s what we’re striving for. We’re hungry. Every game may not be perfect, but that’s what we’re striving for. That’s what we’re working hard to get to.”

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