Coming off a 10-win campaign and an action-packed offseason, the Seattle Seahawks enter Year 2 of the Mike Macdonald era looking to take the next step toward establishing themselves as a legitimate NFC contender.

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For the Seahawks to do so, what’s the most reasonable path for them to take?

When posed that question last week on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy, FTN Fantasy’s Aaron Schatz naturally centered his attention on the defense.

After some initial growing pains in Macdonald’s cutting-edge scheme last year, the Seahawks’ defense evolved into one of the league’s best over the second half of the season. Over the final nine weeks, Seattle ranked fifth in scoring defense, fifth in defensive EPA and fourth in total defense.

And now, with nearly every defensive starter returning, the expectations are sky-high on that side of the ball.

It’s worth remembering that when Macdonald was the Baltimore Ravens’ defensive coordinator in 2022 and 2023, his defense found its stride over the second half of Year 1 and was the league’s top-ranked defense in Year 2.

“The most realistic idea of how the Seahawks will suddenly become a really good team is that Mike Macdonald’s defense totally gels,” Schatz said. “(They) improved in the second half of last year and (finished No. 9 in defensive EPA). … Macdonald’s defense with the Ravens improved in the second half of his first year, then took a big step forward in the second year.

“If the Seahawks take a similar step forward, you’d feel very good about how this team will do.”

‘The best-case scenario’

But what about Seattle’s new-look offense?

After a full-scale makeover that includes a new quarterback, multiple new wide receivers, a new left guard, a new offensive coordinator and a brand-new offensive scheme, there are numerous questions on that side of the ball.

Chief among them is whether quarterback Sam Darnold can replicate the breakout 2024 campaign he had with the Minnesota Vikings.

Yet as Schatz pointed out, while Darnold had a strong season, he wasn’t necessarily elite. He ranked 11th in quarterback EPA and 14th in ESPN’s QBR metric.

“Darnold last year was like (slightly above average) among quarterbacks,” Schatz said. “Like, he wasn’t great. It’s just that he was way better than he’s been in the past. And also, (the Vikings’) defense was really good.”

That prompted Schatz to use the 2024 Vikings as a best-case scenario for the 2025 Seahawks. Minnesota went 14-3 last season behind an elite defense (No. 1 in EPA and No. 5 in scoring), a good offense (No. 9 in both EPA and scoring) and a knack for winning close games (9-1 in one-score contests).

“The best-case scenario for the Seahawks looks similar to last year’s Vikings – the defense is really good, really well-coordinated, and the quarterback is a little bit above average,” Schatz said.

Listen to the full conversation with FTN Fantasy’s Aaron Schatz at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

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