Designers Mike Macdonald, Ryan Grubb show why Seahawks are in Tennessee joint practicing

Ryan Grubb called more plays that pushed the ball more down the field.

Mike Macdonald used more of the defensive schemes he’s known for to confuse offenses. He moved his players around more. On one snap, the coach even had star rookie defensive tackle Byron Murphy dropping into the middle of the field into pass coverage.

Why Macdonald brought his Seahawks 2,000 miles to Nashville for joint practices against the Tennessee Titans, Seattle’s first joint practices since 1991, was on display Wednesday at the Saint Thomas Sports Park.

The NFL’s youngest head coach can have his starters on offense and defense run far more of the playbooks against starters for another team, but in a closed practice and not in a preseason game that is broadcast on television for all the league to see, archive and study.

The practices here Wednesday and Thursday will be the most extensive work quarterback Geno Smith, wide receiver DK Metcalf, the still-in-flux offensive line plus Macdonald’s defense will get in the installation of Grubb’s and Macdonald’s new schemes before the season begins Sept. 8 against Denver.

The News Tribune asked Macdonald following the 2-hour, 15-minute practice and scrimmaging in 89-degree heat with 55% humidity how much of his playbook he is using in the closed practices versus what he used last weekend in the preseason opener at the Chargers and what he will use Saturday in the preseason game against the Titans here.

“I think significantly more than you’d be comfortable putting out to everybody,” he said.

“Some of the things you’re showing, it’s a balance of like, ‘Hey, this is our best stuff right now. Let’s see how it looks.’ It’s just some stuff we want to — not ‘experiment’ with — but let’s see how it looks, that we really might not have as many reps as we want against someone that we’re not used to how their motioning, and shifting, and the plays that they’re running.

“So just kind of see how it works.”

Wednesday when Macdonald moved his defense around at and even after the snap, a staple of what made his defense with the Baltimore Ravens the league’s best last season, his Seahawks often got confused more than the Titans. Seattle’s players missed assignments. They didn’t cover exactly the gap or area their defensive innovator demanded.

“When we’re getting a little fancier, there’s some details we need to clean up,” Macdonald said. “The guys know what I’m talking about.

“We’ll see it. But we got some room to grow there.”

They have 3 1/2 weeks before the games get real.

That’s why they are here this week.

So, Smith was winging deep passes far down the field to Metcalf and Jake Bobo against Titans defensive backs who expected them to. Former Seahawks safety Quandre Diggs stayed back deep most of the practice, knowing Metcalf and Bobo were more often than not headed on deep routes.

Smith says Grubb, Seattle’s new offensive coordinator in from two wowing years calling the University of Washington’s plays for quarterback Michael Penix, is putting in plays at a measured pace.

“I think we’re just going through our installs,” Smith said. “Grubb has a plan for how he wants to install plays. We want to make sure that we’re good at our base plays, and we’re good at the things that we’re working on now, before we try to move on and install any more.

“We’re just going week by week, day by day, that type of thing.”

Devon Witherspoon, blitzer

At the start of practice, Devon Witherspoon was all over Titans wide receiver Kearis Jackson. The Seahawks’ Pro Bowl cornerback was flagged for holding by the NFL officials monitoring the one-on-one pass-coverage drill.

Witherspoon again was mostly a nickel cornerback inside, as he’s been most of training camp. That had Tre Brown again outside at left cornerback and Riq Woolen at right cornerback.

By the end of practice, Macdonald had Witherspoon blitzing Titans quarterback Will Levis from all angles of the defense, from inside and off the edges. That was another example of the expanded playbook Macdonald displayed Wednesday that he didn’t last weekend and won’t this weekend in Seattle’s preseason games.

The head coach was coy when asked about Witherspoon’s blitzing following Wednesday’s practice.

“Well, I have to blitz him,” Macdonald said, “because otherwise he’ll complain the whole practice.”

Offensive line struggles...

...specifically with Tennessee’s two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons.

Simmons spent nearly as much time in the Seahawks’ backfield as Smith during 11-on-11 work Wednesday. He was dominant up the middle of Seattle’s O-line, which again started Laken Tomlinson at left guard, Olu Oluwatimi at center and Anthony Bradford at right guard.

Smith would have been sacked at least three times by Simmons had defenders been allowed to hit quarterbacks. Some of Smith’s longest throws, including to Bobo, came as the free-rushing Simmons was yelling to whistle the play dead.

Oluwatimi is holding the place at center until Connor Williams practices for the first time for Seattle. The free agent signed last week from Miami, where he started at center the last two years, may practice next week or the last week of August, Macdonald has said. Williams, 27, is eight months removed from a torn ACL and reconstructive knee surgery. He is a six-year starter in the league.

Wednesday, Williams again watched, not in pads, as his new teammates went through line calls and drills to begin practice.

Cody White impresses

It was another strong day for Cody White. The fifth-year NFL veteran who has appeared in seven career games elsewhere in the league zoomed past Titans cornerback Gabe Jeudy-Lally for a long touchdown throw from Smith during one-on-one pass-coverage drills.

White and Easop Winston, who caught a touchdown pass from Sam Howell on the final play of the day with a sharp route across the back of the end zone, could make the team over third-stringer and currently injured Dee Eskridge.

Eskridge did not practice for the second consecutive day.

The team could hope White and Winston clear league waivers so it can put them on the practice squad after final preseason cuts Aug. 27.

Laviska Shenault appears on a track to win a roster spot at wide receiver behind Metcalf, Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Bobo. That’s because of Shenault’s ability to return kickoffs and break tackles.

Extra points

*Wide receiver Tyler Lockett was in uniform but did not scrimmage. The 10-year veteran has been limited by a nagging leg issue for about a week.

“Yeah, he’s got a little something going on in his leg right now, but he’s good,” Macdonald said. “Tyler will be ready to roll.”

*Bobo made two sterling catches along the sideline on passes from Smith that seemed way out of bounds. The 6-foot-4 wide receiver deftly kept the toes of both cleats inside the sideline boundary while leaning to snare both throws.

*Outside linebacker Boye Mafe had his best pass-rushing day of camp. He beat Titans starting right guard Dillon Radunz multiple times in one-on-one drills. Mafe has struggled to get past Seahawks linemen in daily camp battles.

*Running back Zach Charbonnet felt leg tightness in the morning, so the team held him out of practice. Undrafted rookie George Holani from Boise State was the second running back behind Kenneth Walker. Holani got the third play of the starters’ scrimmage, a 5-yard rush inside. Coaches including Macdonald love Holani’s physicality.

Kenny McIntosh, Seattle’s draft pick last season, was the third back running with the reserve offense.

*Starting defensive end Dre’Mont Jones walked out of practice near the end of it with an apparent injury. It was his second practice returning from two weeks out with a hamstring issue.

“I think he felt a little tweak or something, where he didn’t finish practice,” Macdonald said, “but I think he’s good to go.”

*Starting tight end Noah Fant didn’t practice. “I don’t have any info on that right now,” Macdonald said.