Who Is Mike Macdonald? How Seahawks Coach's Background Earned Him 'Genius' Moniker

RENTON, Wash. — Seattle Seahawks offensive tackle Abraham Lucas believes his head coach, Mike Macdonald, is a football savant. 

"Mike’s a genius," Lucas told me. "The term ‘football guy’ gets thrown around very loosely, but he’s definitely a football guy. He lives it. He breathes it. Seeing that, it’s easy for guys to buy in. And we just enjoy playing for him.

"I don’t know how to describe it other than if you’ve ever been in the presence of somebody who is very, very good at what they do — you may not even know about the thing that they’re doing — but you can just tell that they’re good. That’s kind of how I would describe it. Just being around him and watching him, he knows what he’s doing and he’s about it. I know he’s going to come through. I know he’s going to get after it and I think it’s awesome." 

"It’s just the brain on him," Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV added in a conversation with me. "He’s a smart man, smart coach. He puts us in position to be successful and he’s not afraid to change his style and make things work for the players and what’s needed for the program. I think that’s why we flourish. We love each other and we keep fighting." 

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Macdonald has posted double-digit wins in his first two seasons in Seattle, earned the No. 1 seed in the NFC this season and has the Seahawks on the precipice of reaching their fourth Super Bowl in franchise history. The Seahawks will host the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app) as they seek their first trip to the Super Bowl in 11 seasons. 

But what makes Macdonald and the Seahawks so successful this quickly? We explore those questions in our conversation with Seattle’s cerebral head coach.

When Sam Darnold struggled against the Rams in the first matchup, how did your team respond to it?

Macdonald: "I think we as a collective made too big of a deal of it. We had a game where we didn’t hit our marks. We made some tough decisions, put the ball in jeopardy and you’ve just got to move on. It’s really that simple.

"I’m thinking like after the Washington [Commanders] game, the guy has like a perfect passer rating, throws for four touchdowns. We're on fire and he’s the same guy the next week. It’s not like he’s some kind of superstar or diva that we can’t talk to anymore. He’s just the same guy every day. So, the consistency of his approach and his personality, it’s not easy to do. I get it, you ride highs and lows in this league and try to stay as consistent as you possibly can. I think that helps him out, going from week to week."

After throwing four interceptions in the first matchup against the Rams this season, Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold threw for two touchdowns in the second matchup. That's just part of the reason why Sunday's NFC Championship Game will be played in Seattle. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)

What did offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak tell you about his time with Sam from San Francisco?

Macdonald: "He’s extremely talented. Pretty much every day, he’d do some great stuff. And then also just as a teammate, his attitude, how he worked well with Brock [Purdy]. And what type of teammate he was with the rest of those guys. He spoke really highly of him as a person." 

You’ve won 25 games in two seasons and are on the brink or reaching the Super Bowl. How were you able to get things going so quickly when you arrived in Seattle, and what are two or three core tenets that you leaned on?

Macdonald: "[Seahawks general manager] John Schneider has been a tremendous help. He sees things very clearly. And so, you just trust your judgment on the direction you’re going, that’s really helpful. [Seahawks assistant head coach] Leslie Frazier has been a tremendous help, just on a daily basis. When I get out of whack, he kind of brings me back. Or if I need a pick-me-up, he’s there. And then he has a great rapport with really everybody in the building, so he has a great feeling for directions we need to go, and things like that.

"And I’d say just doing the work throughout the whole process. We have a vision about who we want to be, and who we want to become. Let’s go make it happen. Let’s not be afraid to say who we want to be. Let’s put it out there, and let’s go chase it every day. Sometimes you have to make some tough decisions, but the process has been probably more rewarding than I anticipated. The chase of the vision of who we want to be, just because of who we are working with every day." 

Your father, Hugh Macdonald, is a 1971 West Point graduate. How did that influence you?

McDonald: "I’ve always respected him because he’s like a man of integrity. He’s real, so there’s no fluff or pomp and circumstance, so he’s a very kind of straight-forward, straight arrow type of guy. And you probably see where that comes from (laughs). The apple doesn’t fall very far from the tree, I hope.

"But you respect that. I think players deserve to be told the truth, back up things you say and things like that. And if you’re consistent in that enough, I think that builds trust with the guys." 

What’s an example of that no-nonsense approach from your relationship with your dad?

Macdonald: "Probably when I started to meet his friends from West Point, because they’re still pretty close to this day. But it was really when he was getting remarried, they would just come up to and tell me what type of guy my dad was. And it’s cool to hear what people think of your father. You could tell it was real, and they loved him. They had his respect."

What makes Jaxon Smith-Njigba so special?

Macdonald: "I think he can do things at all three levels. There’s a lot of great receivers in this league who don’t have as diverse of a skill set as he does. Anywhere from an intermediate route tree, catch-and-run stuff at the line of scrimmage and then we’ve seen his ability to track the ball at the third level and keep his body position, all that kind of stuff. There’s just not that many people that can do that.

"You couple that with his work ethic and his competitiveness. His relationship with Sam. Our offensive coaches have done a good job of getting him some good looks as well, so I think it’s kind of a culmination of all those things." 

Jaxon Smith-Njigba was a breakout star this season, leading the league in receiving yards (1,793) as he's the favorite to win Offensive Player of the Year. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

And defensively, why are you playing so well on that side of the ball? 

Macdonald: "I think the first thing is, we realize we need to take it to another level. There is room for growth, and it’s exciting. You are having results that you like in terms of wins, but you’re also watching tape and saying, 'Hey, look we’ve done all these things that are great, but look at where we can go if we X, Y and Z corrected, or taken to the next level.’ Or if we can individually take our game one step above down this road to the last quarter of the season, so I think that is the mentality of this group right now."

In Who Is?, We'll help you get to know breakout stars, newcomers and more with this Q&A series.