How the Seahawks are Flipping the Script in the NFL

Author’s note: This sports section documents the Seahawks’ season up to November 17th using data from NFL Pro. For information about Bush athletics, you can go to BushBlazersAthletics.com. For more information on sports, you can go to ESPN.com. 

It’s a fun time to be a Seahawks fan. Almost all of the bets the Seahawks had made this offseason have paid off. New quarterback Sam Darnold has exceeded expectations, and trading receiver DK Metcalf saved the Seahawks long-term money, allowing superstar Jaxon Smith-Njigba to truly break out. 

Sam Darnold is averaging 0.16 estimated points added (EPA) per play passing, which is the fifth-best mark in the league, surrounded by stars like Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, and Matthew Stafford. It’s important to note that, when pressured, his EPA per play drops to -0.46, which is 22nd in the league. He is in the same range when under pressure as Dillon Gabriel and J.J. McCarthy. He is still prone to the occasional I-want-to-throw-it-to-the-defense play, as evidenced by his four-interception game versus the Rams. The juxtaposition between his play with a clean pocket and his play under pressure may become evident when the Seahawks need to play more difficult playoff games. 

Darnold’s passing splits normally (left) and under pressure (right) (Image by NFL Pro)

Seahawks fans know about JSN and Sam Darnold, but one specific aspect of the Seahawks season is going under the radar: The innovation sparked by head coach Mike Macdonald.

The Seahawks defense is the type of special unit that wins games on its own. Going into the season, it felt like the defense was filled with good, but not elite players. The big question this season for the Seahawks was if the defense could take the next step, from good last year to great, or even elite. The Seahawks defense finished 11th in EPA per play in 2024. This year, they have jumped to fifth. So how did they improve? 

Dictating to the Offense: A New Personnel

Every defensive coach says it: “We need to control the offense,” and “We can’t let them dictate the flow of the game.” Many coaches revert to blitzes to be aggressive—but not Mike Macdonald. Despite having recorded a league-high 55.1% pressure rate when blitzing, the Seahawks have blitzed at the second-lowest rate this season (19.4%). Now that every offensive play has “hot” reads to pass to when extra rushers come, blitzes have become less of a surprise. Mike Macdonald may have just found another solution. 

Macdonald’s plan began when he took defensive weapon Nick Emmanwori in the second round of the NFL Draft. Emmanwori is 6’3”, 220 lbs, and a hybrid player—he has the measurables to be classified as either a small linebacker or a big defensive back. Despite experiential and technical problems, this pick was about more than the singular player. It was a reformation of the Seahawks personnel.

A team uses nickel personnel when there are five defensive backs and six linebackers or defensive linemen on defense, as opposed to base personnel, where there are only four defensive backs. Traditionally, teams are significantly better at defending the run against nickel personnel and thus only use nickel in situations where teams have three wide receivers. The advantages of nickel are that you have an extra cornerback to guard the pass; however, oftentimes this cornerback is shorter to match up with a quicker and smaller slot receiver. Teams use base personnel to have an extra linebacker to defend the run or a bigger tight end. 

In the flow of an NFL game, the offense will typically dictate the personnel to the defense. For example, if an NFL team comes out with two wide receivers, two tight ends, and one running back, the defense will traditionally match with an extra linebacker in base personnel. If a team uses three receivers instead, the defense should match with nickel personnel.

[On left] Base personnel with four defensive backs. [On right] Nickel personnel with an extra defensive back. In this case, the Steelers’ sub cornerback Mike Hilton (28) for linebacker Vince Williams (98) to better defend the pass. (Image by Steelers Depot)

Last season, the Seahawks played nickel personnel at a rate of 70%, which was just above league average. This year, the Seahawks have changed this, playing 84% nickel personnel, the highest rate in the last three years and 21% above league average. While the Seahawks have played nickel against three receiver sets, they have also played nickel when other teams play base defense. This explains their high usage, but why are they doing it? Nick Emmanwori is the reason. Emmanwori can fulfill the role of a dynamic covering cornerback and a run-defending linebacker. Thus, the Seahawks can stay in nickel with Emmanwori as their fifth defensive back, gaining both the pass-defending benefits of nickel and the run-defending benefits of base. 

Offenses have long been able to dictate to the defense just by the number of receivers they put into the play. The Seahawks have changed this, finding personnel so versatile that it dictates to the offense.

Imagine this: An away team heads to Lumen Field. The Seahawks defer the opening kickoff, and the opposing team receives. The offense comes out in a two-receiver set, which they expect the Seahawks to “match” with base personnel. Instead, the Seahawks go out in nickel personnel, creating confusion. This is where the Seahawks gain the upper hand. Nick Emmanwori’s ability to not only be an efficient cornerback but also be versatile enough to defend the run like a linebacker makes the offense no longer have this advantage. The Seahawks will have a good chance to stuff the run against this heavier personnel, and the offense certainly will not be able to efficiently pass the ball with two receivers against five defensive backs. 

Seahawks nickel personnel, with #3 Nick Emmanwori (on right) playing the role of both a weak-side linebacker in base defense and a slot cornerback in nickel defense. (Image by NFL Pro)

This is the beginning of a new evolution in defensive football: versatility in the deployment of personnel. Instead of having cornerbacks who only specialize in coverage and linemen who only specialize in run defense, the league will shift its focus to taking players who, while less technically proficient at a specific skill, can play multiple positions and roles. This happens in offense, too. A running back or tight end is frequently motioned out to wide receiver, or an offensive lineman will play in a jumbo set for a tight end. The Seahawks’ defense finding a way to dictate the flow of the game to the offense is a clear reason for its success, and Macdonald’s new scheme will contextualize many of the personnel and schematic transformations the NFL will undergo in the future.