Three things have to happen for the Seattle Seahawks to return to greatness
For close to a decade now, the Seahawks have been consistently competent, occasionally good, but never, ever great.
In some respects, this is an extraordinary accomplishment.
The Seahawks have moved on from both an epic defense and a franchise quarterback without every bottoming out. They won at least one playoff game in five successive seasons from 2012 through 2017. They reached the Super Bowl twice. Since then, the Seahawks have suffered just one losing season while turning over their entire roster.
On the other hand, the Seahawks have won exactly one playoff game over the previous eight seasons, and even that came with an asterisk: Philadelphia’s starting quarterback Carson Wentz left the game with a concussion.
The Seahawks have been, as the kids now say, decidedly mid. This term is applied to items and entities that are not bad per se, but they’re not all that good, either.
I’m not sure that will change this year given the changes on Seattle’s offense. But if the Seahawks are going to get back into the playoffs for the first time in three years, and perhaps even win a game in the postseason, they will need three things to occur:
1. The defense must be great.
Not good. Not improving. Great.
This was the reason Mike Macdonald was hired, and his defense showed significant improvement after the midseason acquisition of linebacker Ernest Jones IV.
Through the first 10 games, the Seahawks allowed 138.6 yards rushing per game, 4.8 yards per carry and 10 rushing touchdowns. Over the final seven games, they gave up 95.3 yards rushing per game, 4.2 per carry and just one rushing touchdown.
This offseason, Seattle signed defensive lineman Demarcus Lawrence and drafted safety Nick Emmanwori. If the Seahawks are going to reach the playoffs from this division this year, they’re going to need a top-five defense.
2. Sam Darnold must be as good as Geno Smith was.
The Seahawks did not sign Darnold with the expectation he’ll be better than Smith. If the Seahawks really believed that, they wouldn’t have tried to re-sign Smith. It was only after Seattle failed to reach a deal that Smith was dealt to the Raiders and Darnold was signed as a free agent.
It’s more accurate to say the Seahawks don’t see Darnold as a downgrade from Smith. Darnold is younger, and he has shown tremendous growth the past two years after a rough start to his career.
He has a chance to become Seattle’s long-term starter, but that’s certainly not guaranteed. The fact that the Seahawks drafted quarterback Jalen Milroe in the third round is a clue that the Seahawks are keeping their options open beyond this season.
I know how very tempting it is to use 2012 as a reference point.
That was the year Seattle signed Matt Flynn and drafted Russell Wilson. The difference, however, is that Wilson was more NFL-ready than Milroe, and quarterback was really the one thing that offense was missing.
This year? The offense is much more a work in progress. DK Metcalf was traded to Pittsburgh while receiver Tyler Lockett and tight end Noah Fant were released. Jaxon Smith-Njigba and veteran Cooper Kupp are the only two wide receivers currently on the roster who caught more than 20 passes last season.
If you’re looking for a comparison, it’s similar to what the Seahawks did in 2011 when they signed Tarvaris Jackson to replace Matt Hasselbeck.
Jackson showed tremendous toughness that season and had a 7-7 record as a starter, but he was never able to make big plays down the stretch to win close games. That offseason, Seattle added both Flynn and Wilson and then staged an open competition.
Whether Milroe gets an opportunity to compete for the job a year from now will depend on how Darnold plays this season. Given Darnold’s difficulty under pressure, how he plays may depend in large part on the answer to the next question.
3. Abe Lucas needs to stay healthy.
Lucas is not the best player on Seattle’s team. He might not be the best offensive lineman on the team, given the presence of Charles Cross at left tackle.
Lucas is, however, the team’s most pivotal player because of two things: a) the difference he makes when he’s on the field; b) the frequency that he’s been kept off the field because of a knee injury.
In three season, Lucas has played in 29 games and missed 22. His presence is even more important this season given how much Seattle will need to rely on its running game. After all, that’s a big reason the Seahawks switched offensive coordinators in the offseason. It’s also going to be important because that passing game is going to be a work in progress.
Danny O’Neil was born in Oregon, the son of a logger, but had the good sense to attend college in Washington. He’s covered Seattle sports for 20 years, writing for two newspapers, one glossy magazine and hosting a daily radio show for eight years on KIRO 710 AM. You can subscribe to his free newsletter and find his other work at dannyoneil.com.
This story was originally published July 23, 2025 at 5:30 AM.