The Seattle Seahawks will host the Miami Dolphins this Sunday at 4:05pm eastern standard time. The Seahawks come into the game 2-0 while the Dolphins suffered a loss last week and are 1-1. Below I will break down the Seattle Seahawks staff, roster, and their strengths and weaknesses.
The Seahawks have a new head coach for the first time in 14 years, as Mike MacDonald will take the reins from accomplished head coach Pete Carroll. MacDonald comes over from Baltimore where he was the defensive coordinator there for the last two seasons. In his time there, he made them one of the national football leagues best defense. Teams were scared to have to face the ferocious Ravens defense last year, and it was largely due to MacDonald’s aggressive scheme that put his players in a situation to succeed. The Seahawks are averaging 23 points a game, and are getting settled into their new system. It might not be this year, but that number should be lowered in due time.
On offense the Seahawks have a new offensive coordinator in Ryan Grubb, who was the offensive coordinator for the Washington Huskies for the last two years. Washington made a national championship and had one of the most dominant offenses in college football. I think it is interesting that MacDonald is going back to his college roots. Grubb utilizes systems from college that he learned from Kalen DeBoer, who is the current head coach at Alabama but previous head coach at Washington. He uses a spread approach which focuses his wide receivers.
Geno Smith is back for the Seahawks, he has been consistent for the Seahawks over the last three years. Smith has two touchdowns to one interception this year. His running back standing next to him is the very talented young man Kenneth Walker III. Walker is a dynamic back who is good in the run and receiving game. Against a weaker Dolphins defensive line, he could have a very big game.
Seattle’s weapons include DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigbda, and Noah Fant. Metcalf is Seattle’s number one, and his matchup against Jalen Ramsey will be a fun one to watch. Metcalf is one of the most physical wide receivers in the league, and wins off of his athleticism. Lockett is getting older, but is still a consistent separator for Seattle. He will be a consistent option for Geno, but his teammate Jaxon Smith-Njigba could be set for a big game. Smith-Njigba will be facing nickel corner Kader Kohou, who hasn’t had his best season so far. These three receivers will be a tough task for Miami’s secondary, but Noah Fant is also someone to account for. The former first round pick is a good athlete and has good hands.
On the offensive line, the Seahawks are not a dominant force. Left tackle Charles Cross is a talented player who is getting better year by year, he was their first round pick in 2022. Laken Tomlinson is their left guard, who was let go by the Jets last year. Tomlinson has not been the same dominant run blocking specialist like he was in San Francisco. At center, a name that Dolphins fans know well is Connor Williams. Connor got injured on Monday night football last year for Miami, and signed with the Seahawks late this offseason. He is a good run blocking center, who was consistently moving people off the line of scrimmage. The right side is weaker than left, Anthony Bradford and George Fant are below average starters. They might struggle heavily against Jaelan Phillips and Calais Campbell.
The defensive line is where Seattle makes their money. Their defensive line is full of veteran experience, as well as explosive young players. Let’s start with the edge defenders. Uchenna Nwosu and Boye Mafe are disruptive pass rushers. They also have young highly touted edge rusher Derrick Hall who was a recent 2nd round draft pick for Seattle. On the interior, they play a rotation of players. Leonard Williams is very accomplished, Jonathan Hankins is good at stopping the run, Dre’Mont Jones is very solid in both phases, and rookie Byron Murphy II has insane potential. What’s scary is all these guys can play, giving Seattle fresh bodies every few plays. Back to Murphy, he was Seattle’s first round draft pick this past year. Murphy is slightly undersized for a typical defensive tackle, but has rare pass rush explosiveness and strength against the run.
At linebacker, they swapped starters with Miami, quite ironic. Miami paid former Seahawk Jordyn Brooks in free agency while Seattle paid former Dolphin Jerome Baker in free agency. Baker is not a poor player, but has shown signs of regression from his best years in 2020-2021. Baker is best in coverage, as he is undersized and not that physical against the run. The man next to him will be Tyrel Dodson, who is better against the run than pass.
The Seahawks secondary is solid, but nothing special. Their best player is cornerback Devon Witherspoon, their first round pick in 2023. He has been outstanding in his short time in the NFL. Across the field from him is the former UTSA Roadrunner Tyriq Woolen, who broke out as a fifth round pick. It was not a surprise to me, as his length and speed is rare to find in a college prospect. How he fell to the fifth round was absurd to me. In the nickel is Tre Brown, who has shown good traits since his time at Oklahoma. He has good ball skills and is sticky in coverage.
The safety duo of Jordan Love and Rayshawn Jenkins has a lot of experience. Love was given a contract this offseason, he has been really good since being drafted to the New York Giants. He earned his contract due to his production. Jenkins is a veteran, he is better in run support. He was very hit or miss for the Jaguars recently, but he is well coached now and can bounce back from some sub par years.
Overall, this Seahawks team doesn’t have too many differences. They lack some NFL experienced coaches, but I personally don’t think that will be an issue. It has been shown college coaches can make easy transitions into the NFL. I really like their offensive coordinator hire, and MacDonald’s defensive coaching will never be a question.