Two years ago, the Seahawks took a risk in hiring a 36-year-old Mike Macdonald who only had two years of experience as a coordinator at the NFL level. As they celebrate in confetti, joyous off a 29-13 win fueled by Macdonald’s defense, the toughest defense to score against in 2025, it’s clear the risk was well worth the reward.
While the defense held the spotlight for most of the biggest game of the year, there are plenty of other factors to point to when determining how Seattle got to this place in 2025. Starting with the defense, though, Macdonald inherited a group that allowed the eighth-most points and the third-most yards in 2023. In his first year at the helm, that unit improved greatly to the league’s 11th-best scoring defense and the 14th-best total defense. They finished 2025 having allowed the fewest points and the sixth-fewest yards in the NFL.
The team’s defensive personnel looks extremely different than it did two years ago. With Bobby Wagner, Quandre Diggs, Jamal Adams, Jordyn Brooks, Dre’Mont Jones, and Michael Jackson all departed, the Seahawks made an effort to get younger on defense, building around promising, young players like Devon Witherspoon and Julian Love with defenders who fit Macdonald’s system. By trading for Ernest Jones, drafting players like Byron Murphy and Nick Emmanwori, keeping Leonard Williams in free agency, and bringing in free agents DeMarcus Lawrence, Josh Jobe, and Jarran Reed, Seattle gave one of the league’s best defensive minds a completely retooled defense that dominated throughout their Super Bowl-winning campaign.
Macdonald didn’t just make significant changes to the defense, though. He also realized that turning around an offense that finished 21st in yards and 17th in points scored in 2023 was going to be a priority. While the unit improved in 2024, there was a determination that what was in place was not good enough. The team fired rookie NFL offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, traded resurgent veteran quarterback Geno Smith, traded away unhappy wide receiver D.K. Metcalf, and released ten-year mainstay Tyler Lockett.
Credit can go to general manager John Schneider and his front office staff for this year’s offense, built around young draft picks like running back (and Super Bowl LX MVP) Kenneth Walker III, Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Zach Charbonnet, AJ Barner, and all five starting offensive linemen who were drafted in the last four years — aside from center Jalen Sundell who signed last year as an undrafted free agent.
The necessary supplement to Schneider’s strong draft success to make this unit the third-best scoring offense with the eighth-most yards gained was just the right free agent additions. A new resurgent quarterback, Sam Darnold, and a savvy No. 2 receiver in Cooper Kupp proved to be the perfect fit.
As the Seahawks look to run it all back in 2026, there will be some contract situations to address. Walker, Jobe, Boye Mafe, Coby Bryant, Riq Woolen, and midseason trade acquisition Rashid Shaheed are all set to become unrestricted free agents in March, while starting linebacker Drake Thomas is set to become a restricted free agent.
Luckily, Seattle is in an excellent position when considering cap space for 2026. With their biggest cap hits coming from Darnold ($36.9MM), Williams ($29.64MM), Uchenna Nwosu ($20.77MM), and Kupp ($17.5MM), the Seahawks are sitting pretty with approximately $73.28MM of cap space, per OvertheCap.com, good for the sixth-highest amount in the NFL. And while they only have four draft picks for this coming April, they hold all three of their Day 1 & 2 picks. The team’s biggest challenge will be replacing offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who will now depart to become the next head coach of the Raiders.
After falling short in the toughest game they played this year, the Patriots will turn focus now on how to return to this spot and make sure this sort of offensive performance never happens again. New England rode the league’s No. 2 scoring offense and No. 3 total offense to the Super Bowl then struggled offensively throughout the playoffs. While their defense held AFC opponents in check, in great part due to forcing eight turnovers throughout the postseason, MVP runner up Drake Maye didn’t throw for over 235 yards until tonight, and the offense gave up eight turnovers of its own. And while the running game had buoyed the offense during the run to Super Bowl, Seattle’s defense held them to only 79 yards on the ground tonight. 
The Patriots are also in a decent position to run it all back, though, in 2026. There are a few strong contributors like Jaylinn Hawkins, K’Lavon Chaisson, and Jack Gibbens set to test free agency, but New England holds the 11th-most cap space in the NFL at $42.74MM, per OvertheCap.com. They can even expand on that number by addressing the contracts of a few veterans, who could end up as cap casualties like Stefon Diggs or Morgan Moses. If tonight showed them any glaring issues, they can make a strong attempt to address it with that excessive cap space or one of their 11 draft picks.
Tonight’s game wrapped up another fine NFL season and set us up for what is sure to be an exciting offseason as we now careen toward free agency and the draft. All those whose teams were eliminated far before tonight can renew their championship hopes with visions of tomorrow, and all 10 newly hired head coaches can start sweating as they realize the example that’s been set before them by Mike Vrabel taking a 4-13 squad to 14-3 and a Super Bowl berth in his first year and Macdonald winning a Super Bowl in Year 2. Congratulations to the Seahawks and the 12s (formerly known as the much cooler “12th man”)! Good luck to the rest in 2026!
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