New coach popular with Seahawks, especially now; where installation of offense, defense is

Julian Love started it.

Soon Seahawks teammates followed their Pro Bowl safety. They were calling out and shouting for their new head coach.

“Mike! Yesssss!”

Mike Macdonald, their 37-year-old coach, grinned.

“They’re happy because we canceled (post-practice) meetings,” Macdonald said, “not because they like me.”

They love the NFL’s youngest coach so far. Especially Thursday.

Macdonald sent his Seahawks straight off the practice field into three days off for the holiday weekend. Players are traveling far and wide, including to their former schools, before they have to be back for practice Monday. That’s game week for Macdonald’s first Seahawks opener, Sept. 8 against Denver at Lumen Field.

“We had a great week, and we are going into a few days off here,” Macdonald said. “So, get refreshed and clear our minds, and get ready to play an NFL football game.

“Exciting times.”

Undrafted rookie kick returner Dee Williams is going home to Forsyth, Georgia. He is going to see his family of seven and Brian Nelson, his coach at Mary Persons High School there.

“I haven’t been home (for a football weekend) in five years,” Williams said.

The first in his family to attend college has been playing the last five years at East Central Community College in Decatur, Mississippi. He played the last two at the University of Tennessee, before he made the Seahawks’ 53-man roster to begin the regular season this week.

Installing Seahawks’ new systems

How much of his new defense and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb’s new system are installed as the players go on this break?

“Most...I mean, the concepts that we need are in,” Macdonald said.

“Every game you are doing little tweaks here and there. But it’s not like you are introducing some new thing, some new language that we haven’t heard yet. It’s, ‘Hey, this is the same thing we’ve been doing, but with a twist.’ That’s why you want to get everything in, so they understand those adjustments.

“We’re right there, on defense. I’m sure Grubb has some more stuff up his sleeve (on offense), but it seems like their install has been going smoothly.”

Macdonald also deadpanned: “Yeah, we could go play (this weekend). We’d have a really crappy plan on defense.”

Connor Williams’ progress

This week the Seahawks and offensive line coach Scott Huff increased the practice repetitions for Connor Williams. It’s an ongoing process to get the 27-year-old who signed with Seattle this month ready to start at center in the opening game.

Huff spent time after practice working extra with Williams, as he has the last two weeks.

Williams was the starter for the Miami Dolphins the last two seasons. He tore the anterior cruciate ligament eight months ago then had reconstructive knee surgery. He began practicing with the Seahawks last week.

Asked how Williams is progressing, Macdonald said “well.”

“He looks good. We’ll see next week where we’re at.”

If Williams isn’t ready to play, Olu Oluwatimi would start week one. If Williams proves ready, Oluwatimi would back him up and third center Jalen Sundell, a surprise member of the initial 53-man roster and the second undrafted rookie to make the team, could become an option for the practice squad.

Trevis Gipson for Uchenna Nwosu?

Signs remain Uchenna Nwosu won’t play in the opener, though the Seahawks don’t think his knee injury from the preseason finale will keep him out into mid-October that would have justified putting their top outside linebacker on injured reserve. They did not.

The team traded this week with Jacksonville to acquire outside linebacker Trevis Gipson.

Second-year man Derick Hall, a standout this preseason, moved into Nwosu’s starting position Saturday night after Nwosu got hurt on a cut block by Browns guard Wyatt Teller.

Could Gipson learn enough of Macdonald’s layered defense to be with the first-team defense in the first game?

“He’s catching on fast,” the head man and defensive play caller said. “We’ll see how it shakes out next week, but he’s doing a great job.”

Right guard competition

Macdonald indicated he, Huff and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb have decided between 2023 draft choice Anthony Bradford and rookie third-round pick Christian Haynes who will start at right guard against Denver in week one.

They aren’t telling.

“We have a pretty good feel for how we’re going to line up next week at this point,” Macdonald said.

“Let’s just kind of keep it under wraps and let them figure it out first snap of the game.”

Bradford started the final preseason game with other regulars on the line. That is an indication the coaches are leaning toward him to start the opener.

Captains

Unlike the Seahawks under previous coach Pete Carroll, Macdonald’s team will not have season-long captains in 2024.

“Yeah, we will do game captains week by week.” Macdonald said. “So you’ll see a bunch of different guys, just like we did in the preseason.”

Tyreke Smith returns

Two years after they drafted him in the fifth round out of Ohio State, after a hip injury ended his rookie season of 2022, Tyreke Smith is a Seahawk again.

The team signed the edge-rushing outside linebacker and new number 59 to the practice squad Thursday.

Upon his return from 2022 on injured reserve Smith, 24, played nine snaps on defense and five on special teams in one game for Seattle in 2023. The NFC West-rival Arizona Cardinals signed Smith off the Seahawks’ practice squad in December 2023. He played in two games for the Cardinals late last season.

Arizona released him Tuesday among their final cuts of this preseason.

New cornerback

The Seahawks signed cornerback Josh Jobe to the practice squad.

A 2022 undrafted rookie from Alabama, he played 28 games the last two seasons for Philadelphia. He started three games last year for the Eagles.