Mike Macdonald's rising Seattle Seahawks defense ranked among top 10 units in the NFL

One of the overlooked reasons for Sam Darnold's surge forward last season is that he didn't have to force it the way he did early in his career when he was starting with the New York Jets and the Carolina Panthers. Getting paired with an elite defense will do that for you - and the Minnesota Vikings were spectacular on that side of the ball in 2024, finishing the year ranked fifth in scoring defense.

As a result, Darnold was free to go through his progressions and not have to play any type of hero ball. While his supporting cast is not as good on offense, Darnold should be able to enjoy a similar dynamic with the Seattle Seahawks, who finished last season 11th in points allowed and played at a top-five level after their Week 10 bye.

The personnel will mostly be the same aside from swapping Dre'Mont Jones out and DeMarus Lawrence in on the edge. Another exception is rookie safety Nick Emmanwori, who Macdonald might look to use in a kind of utility Kyle Hamilton type role - disrupting the offense a little bit everywhere.

The biggest step forward should come with Macdonald entering his second year calling the plays for this defense. When he did that for the Baltimore Ravens two seasons ago they had by far the best defense in the NFL.

Heading into the 2025 season, Seattle's up-and-coming defense isn't considered too far off. According to a new ranking by Matt Johnson at Sportsnaut, this is the seventh-best defensive unit in the league this year.

"Seattle did spend the majority of its draft capital on the offense, but Mike Macdonald landed a new defensive toy in athletic marvel Nick Emmanwori. The Kyle Hamilton comparison is outlandish, but Macdonald will know how to utilize Emmanwori’s speed and length. The Seahawks also added DeMarcus Lawrence to solidify their defensive line and we’re expecting a second-year leap from Byron Murphy. Plus, the second year of Macdonald’s defensive scheme is historically when things click for the players."

One of the elements that will need to click is turning a good pass rush into a great one. For that to happen the Seahawks will have to get a healthy year from outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu, who's only played 12 games over the last two years due to injuries. They'll also need Byron Murphy II to break out after a quiet rookie year.

Elsewhere, a fully-focused Riq Woolen would do wonders for an already very strong secondary. For it all to work they'll need middle linebacker Ernest Jones to play every game - or close to it - as there's no other off-ball linebacker even close to what he can do currently on the roster.