Seahawks camp day 4: Some wayward players learn who Mike Macdonald is; Tre Brown excels

Want to know who Mike Macdonald is?

About 12 younger Seahawks players found out following the fourth practice of training camp Saturday.

The players have their first day off from camp Sunday. After Saturday’s practice ended, Macdonald gathered his players around him in the center of the field. The new coach, the NFL’s youngest head man at age 37, said a few words summarizing the practice, as he does each day. Then he released the players.

They have 75 minutes from then until each day’s post-practice team meeting. Macdonald sees that as plenty of time for each player to sign autographs to the 1,000 or so fans who came to practice and sat in the sun for three hours, then shower, eat, decompress and do whatever before the team meeting.

Immediately following the latest camp practice, most players and pretty much all veteran ones spread around the field’s perimeter to sign autographs. A dozen or so younger Seahawks defensive players charged off the field into the team facility.

Macdonald was talking to a team executive in the middle of the field. He looked up to see those younger players entering the building. He stopped his conversation. He barked to an assistant, ordering him to fish those exiting players back outside and onto the field to sign autographs.

Seconds later, those younger guys came back outside, a lot more quickly than they’d gone inside.

Macdonald ordered them to “the wall,” the team’s term for the fence that separates the fans from the east practice field.

A small moment, yes. But one indicative of who Macdonald is as a leader — and what he’s doing when the followers inevitably test him.

One player who was signing autographs near the facility’s door knows. He saw the quickly exiting teammates come back out even more more quickly, and said: “Mike does not play.”

No, he does not.

“I mean...” Macdonald told The News Tribune a few minutes later, smiling and shaking his head.

New starting linebacker Jerome Baker, 27, is in his seventh NFL training camp. Yes, he was on the field signing autographs immediately after Macdonald broke the Seahawks from practice on Saturday.

“He’s a man who says what he says, and his actions follow,” Baker, who signed with Seattle this spring from Miami, said of his new head coach.

Four practices into his first training camp as a coach at any level, characteristics of Macdonald are emerging.

He is smart.

His players say the innovative coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens’ deceptive, league-leading defense the last two seasons is extraordinarily intelligent.

Seahawks Pro Bowl cornerback Devon Witherspoon called Macdonald a “nerd.”

“He’s cool people, man,” Witherspoon said. “But he’s different, though. He’s like...he a brain guy. I mean, he’s really smart and intellectual. So, it’s like, the way he builds defenses is not natural or normal around the league. That’s what makes him different.”

Macdonald is direct.

When rookie first-round draft choice Byron Murphy wasn’t making as sharp a first impression in offseason practices as Seahawks coaches expected from their prized new defensive tackle, Macdonald said after the team’s rookie minicamp in early May of Murphy: “Need to get in a little bit better shape, so we can get through a whole practice and fly around like we expect him to.”

Saturday, Macdonald said of Murphy’s start to training camp: “I think Murph probably had a slower couple of days than he wanted to coming out.”

Macdonald also was asked about how the installation of his new defense, in particular about how the defensive line is coming along. Seattle’s defense was 30th overall in the NFL last season and 31st, next to last, against the run in 2023.

“We want it to be faster,” Macdonald said.

It undoubtedly was the same message he’s already given his players.

“It’s not where we want it to be, yet. But we’ll get there,” Macdonald said.

“We’re chasing it right now. ...It’s not perfect yet...There’s a lot that we’ve got to make right.”

Including 100% participation in signing autographs for fans after practices.

Almost 45 minutes after drills ended Saturday, the veteran Seahawks were setting that example.

Tyler Lockett, in his 10th year in the league, was on the sideline signing a little girl’s bucket hat. Third-year veteran Riq Woolen was on “the wall” at the farthest point from the locker room taking selfies with smiling, giddy fans.

DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njgiba were across the way talking with other visitors.

Some rookies have gotten Macdonald’s message — in a way that one woman wearing a royal blue, Lockett Seahawks throwback will never forget.

She asked sixth-round draft choice and offensive tackle Mike Jerrell if he would give her one of his gloves he’d worn through practice.

“A glove?” the surprised Jerrell said. “OK.”

He then took about a minute to get the tape off his wrist to get the glove off his hand. Jerrell gave it to the woman, then signed it, too.

Tre Brown excelling

In each of the four practices of camp, new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb has been sending Metcalf, Lockett, Smith-Njigba, Jake Bobo and more receivers on routes at starting left cornerback Tre Brown. Geno Smith has been targeting Brown with throws repeatedly.

In each of the four practices, Brown has denied them all catches and touchdowns.

Saturday, the fourth-year veteran brilliantly used his 5-foot-10, 190-pound body to wall off the 6-4, 235-pound Metcalf into the sideline boundary of the end zone. Twice. By the time Smith’s high throws arrived for Metcalf to reach over Brown to catch them, Brown had forced Metcalf out of bounds. Incomplete passes instead of two touchdowns.

Many of the incomplete passes in red-zone and other 11-on-11 scrimmages in this camp have been while targeting Brown.

“Yeah, we have a lot of great competition in the corner room, as you know, moving guys around. But Tre’s out there, he’s battling his competitors,” Macdonald said.

“Just pleased with where he is. His progress. His attitude.”

Brown has been the starting left cornerback with Witherspoon inside at nickel, slot corner for all but one play of 11-on-11 scrimmaging in camp. That one play, Friday, Witherspoon was outside as the left cornerback opposite Woolen on the right.

As the Right Tackle Turns

In Saturday’s episode, 32-year-old ninth-year veteran George Fant was back from his veteran day off Friday and starting at right tackle for the second time in three days.

Abe Lucas remains out indefinitely following knee surgery.

Fant appeared to jam his neck midway through practice. The team doctor looked at him and he sat out a couple series as McClendon Curtis replaced him. Fant returned to finish the practice.

Curtis, the starting right guard in offseason practices when Anthony Bradford was out with an injured ankle, was the starting right tackle for the first half of the first camp practice Wednesday. Macdonald said this week Curtis is likely to stay as a tackle while Lucas is out.

Dre’Mont Jones rests minor injury

Defensive end Dre’Mont Jones did not practice a day after he collided with a teammate in the middle of the field away from a play and fell to the ground.

Macdonald says Jones has a minor hamstring injury.

“He’s good,” the coach said.

Murphy again played a couple snaps with the first defense as an end.