In terms of pressure on a leader to fix wayward local institutions such as Boeing, Seattle Police or the Mariners, Mike Macdonald was down the list a bit. Then again, he was the surprise hire to fix something that venerable football sage Pete Carroll didn’t figure was broken after a 9-8 season. So the youngest head coach in the NFL (37) had some proving to do Sunday in the Seahawks regular season opener.
Especially after a garish first half at the Loo against the Denver Broncos.
The equally inept visitors led 13-9 only because the Seahawks surrendered two safeties in the second quarter, a feat that, in the league’s Hall of Infamy, will glow with the light of a thousand suns.
As desperate as college ball’s Pac-2 Conference is to expand, it’s doubtful they would have accepted at halftime a petition from either participant to join. The Broncos had 121 yards of offense, 19 more than the Seahawks.
“Started just like we wanted to start,” Macdonald said, offering the nervous humor of a driver who just swerved away from an oncoming truck. Change came in the second half when the Seahawks asked less of a still-mediocre offensive line, gave RB Kenneth Walker the ball and said “go.” He responded with 103 rushing yards and a touchdown to control the final 30 minutes and ease into a 26-20 triumph that likely will be little remembered except for one thing.
In the post-game locker room, QB Geno Smith presented the game ball to a man only three years his senior who had never been a head coach at any level.
“That was such a cool moment for coach to get his first win — it was important for him,” Smith said. “I couldn’t say anything. The whole locker room was shouting. Everyone was so happy for him.”
Safety Julian Love, who led an improved defense with 10 solo tackles, an interception, a pass defensed and a tackle for loss, said Macdonald blushed in embarrassment, and attempted to defer credit to everyone else. As for the bumbling first half, Love, a sixth-year player from Notre Dame, dismissed it.
“You see a lot of sloppy ball played around the league in the first week,” said Julian Love. “You just play through it.”
The absence of panic was something of a benchmark for a first-game coach. But Macdonald admitted he didn’t know what changes were afoot since Ryan Grubb, also in his first game as an NFL offensive coordinator, made all the adjustments without consulting the head coach, who calls the defense.
The best adjustment resulted in the day’s longest pass. The first play of the fourth quarter was a 30-yard completion to Zach Charbonnet after the backup running back ran a wheel route to get behind the Broncos defense for the game’s easiest score, and a 26-13 lead.
That put pressure on the Broncos, who were starting a rookie quarterback whose name is familiar to many Seattle-area sports fans. Bo Nix was a premier QB at Oregon, but the Ducks lost their final three games to the other pro team up the I-5 street, Washington, in a fashion similar to the Broncos Sunday — mistakes from Nix trying to do too much. Nix completed 26 of 42 passes for just 138 yards, two picks and two sacks. With a sellout crowd castigating him as they did when the Broncos had another familiar QB, Russell Wilson, Denver was tender fodder.
Even though the Seahawks may have lost to injury another right tackle, George Fant, McDonald post-game was trying to sound grateful without being giddy.
“It was something special, I’ll tell you that,” he said of the atmosphere. “It was really, really cool. (Players were) looking at six months of put-on-the-gas preparation, trying to get everything together. It takes the whole building, organization and fans. Just looking around the stadium and seeing everybody, you’re like, man, this is pretty rad. Pretty awesome. It lived up to all the hype.
It hasn’t hit me yet, so maybe the moment will come.”
He did feel something else: Marshawn Lynch came up behind him on the sidelines during the game and squeezed his shoulders.
“Never had a former player talk to me mid-game,” Macdonald said brightly of the former Seahawks star violating yet another NFL protocol. “Pretty cool. He’s one of my favorite players, all-time. He’s incredible. He came out right behind me. And I found myself talking to him as they were taking the field.”
Macdonald didn’t divulge the contents of the conversation. It was apparently brief. There was no evidence that Macdonald learned of the Lynch tradition of celebration via crotch grab.
One thing at a time.
I didn’t think the column was living up to your tier one level of snark. Then I read the last sentence.
From listening to the game, it seemed like 1) the defense looks like it’s returning to the strong tackling foundation of Carroll’s best years here, and 2) the offensive line will be the primary focus of next year’s draft.
On a purely aesthetic note, there’s online clamoring for the Seahawks to return to the royal blue and silver throwbacks they wore Sunday full-time. I personally like the current ones and would keep the throwbacks for special occasions like Thanksgiving or anniversaries. I wouldn’t be opposed to using the newer Seahawk logo on the throwback silver helmets for some variety.