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Mike Macdonald hired a couple of familiar coaches on Friday.
The Seattle Seahawks made a couple of coaching staff hires on Friday, and both have hires ties with head coach Mike Macdonald from their Baltimore Ravens days.
That includes new Seahawks inside linebackers coach Zachary Orr, who served as the Ravens defensive coordinator after Macdonald’s time in the role. Macdonald and Orr worked together in Baltimore for many years, and Orr bid farewell to Baltimore on Friday via social media. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Orr had been hired by the Seahawks.
“Baltimore it’s always love from my end,” Orr wrote on X. “Although the last couple years we did not achieve our goals that we set out to achieve, I will choose to cherish the brotherhood, fellow coaches, players making plays, division title, playoff win, etc!”
Now, Orr will look to build on Macdonald’s defensive vision for the Seahawks after a dominating championship season that culminated with a Super Bowl win against the New England Patriots. It could also provide a successor plan for the Seahawks if current defensive coordinator Aden Durde leaves for a head coaching job in the future. Durde previously interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns for the head coaching openings this year.
It’s worth noting that Seahawks inside linebackers coach Kirk Olivadotti remains on staff, according to ESPN. Olivadotti was a significant part of the Seahawks’ defensive success, since the unit featured the inside linebackers, and he has been with the team since 2024, when Macdonald came on board.
Seahawks’ Other Coaching Hire on Friday Boosts the Offense
On Friday, Seattle also added Daniel Stern to the offensive coaching staff, but his role hasn’t been announced, per Schefter.
Stern served as the Ravens director of football strategy/assistant quarterback coach, he developed a strong passing game for nearly a decade with quarterback Lamar Jackson. Seattle could utilize Stern to strengthen the passing game with quarterback Sam Darnold and wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba after a strong 2025 season.
Mike Macdonald and Zachary Orr Go Way Back
Macdonald and Orr go all the way back to 2014 when Macdonald served as an intern on the defensive staff, and Orr was a player for the Ravens at the time.
They also had a stint together on staff between 2017 and 2020 before their second stint of 2022-2023. Macdonald expressed his appreciation of Orr after the transition of defensive coordinator in 2024.
“I love Zach Orr,” Macdonald said during 105.7 The Fan’s Inside Access in 2024. “He’s going to knock it out of the park. He is a future head coach in this league, so enjoy him while you have him.”
“But the guys are going to play with their hair on fire, and they’re going to play together, I know that. Zach understands what it looks like in Baltimore, and he connects with the players better than anyone I’ve ever been around,” Macdonald added.
Orr had been looking for defensive coordinator jobs elsewhere after the Ravens fired head coach John Harbaugh in January. The Seahawks’ addition of Orr gives the team a highly-experienced defensive expert who knows and is aligned with Macdonald’s defensive approach.
Matthew Davis covers the NFL, WNBA and college sports for Heavy.com. As a contributing writer to the StarTribune, he has also covered Minnesota prep sports since 2016. More about Matthew Davis
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