All things considered, Mike Macdonald had a pretty good start to his head-coaching career with the Seattle Seahawks.
Yes, the Seahawks didn't make the playoffs as they lost the NFC West title due to tiebrakers, but 10 wins in Macdonald's first year is still nothing to sneeze at. Additionally, the Seahawks showed clear improvement in the second half of the year, particularly on defense when Macdonald had fully installed his system with players he wanted.
So, a good year all around, but the jury may still be out on Macdonald.
Bleacher Report's Moe Moton recently did a hot seat check for every NFL head coach, and placed Macdonald in the "room temperature seats" tier.
"Any time a new head coach fires one of his coordinators, you must consider the urgency factor," Moton wrote. "Macdonald fired OC Ryan Grubb after their first season together. If he flubs his second choice in an offensive play-caller, the Seahawks may see him as the bigger problem."
There's no beating around the bush, Macdonald swung and missed on his first offensive coordinator hire. Grubb's air raid system that was so successful in college did not translate whatsoever to the NFL, especially with such a bad offensive line. He also reportedly alienated some of his key players, with DK Metcalf being by far the most vocal about that.
Macdonald's second offensive coordinator is Klint Kubiak, who held the same position with the New Orleans Saints last season. Kubiak brings a west-coast style of offense inspired by some of the best play-callers in the league, and with a new-look unit, he should have the pieces to bring his vision to life. The Seahawks do still need to address the offensive line, however.
From a defensive and game-management perspective, however, Macdonald looks like he's on his way to being a very strong head coach in this league.
