'A bigger vision': How the Seahawks' staff built the 'Dark Side' defense

For NFL fans in the pacific northwest, the 2025 season featured some déjà vu.

The Seattle Seahawks reached the Super Bowl thanks to a ferocious defense that leads the league in fewest points allowed, as they did in 2014. This time around it was second-year head coach Mike Macdonald and his staff at the helm, not experienced head coach Pete Carroll in year five.

In Week 11 last season, the Seahawks beat the San Francisco 49ers in Levi’s Stadium – where they hope to hoist a Lombardi Trophy on Sunday. Macdonald took the opportunity after the game to make a statement.

“We just made kind of a pact with each other: We’re going to be a great defense no matter what it takes,” Macdonald said. “And they bought in.”

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They’ve played to a level reminiscent of the legendary “Legion of Boom” defenses that took the Seahawks to two Super Bowls and one championship.

It’s not a carbon copy, though.

Oct 20, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV (13) talks with Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald during the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at Lumen Field.

Those Seattle defenses under Pete Carroll were built through the NFL Draft. Selections like Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman, Bobby Wagner, Kam Chancellor, K.J. Wright and Bruce Irvin pushed the team to their heights.

This Seahawks’ No. 1 ranked defense took a different route.

As expected, premium draft picks like Devon Witherspoon and Byron Murphy II at defensive tackle have progressed to stars. But collecting the starters required the franchise to use all team building avenues.

Trades brought in defensive tackle Leonard Williams and linebacker Ernest Jones IV. Free agent signings supplied safety Julian Love, edge rusher Demarcus Lawrence and linebacker Uchenna Nwosu.

No matter how they got to the “dark side” defense, they’re all playing the best football of their careers.

“[Macdonald] talks about, we all talk about all the time, what is our vision for the player,” Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde said. “Where do we see them in the defense, what’s their role?”

“It’s identifying what they do well, then how do we put it on repeat and then how do we give them the confidence to do what we ask them to do,” Seattle defensive line coach Justin Hinds explained.

Once the staff best identifies the fit, they fold that player into the best role.

“It may be a bigger vision than what they have for themselves,” Durde said. “Because when you set those standards and set those goals, you can push people and then what happens is they have belief and they can grow from there.”

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Williams was a high first-round pick a decade ago. Seattle is his third team and, in his 11th season, the defensive lineman made second-team All-Pro for the first time.

“They coach us all differently,” Williams said. “They know my skill set is different than Byron Murphy’s skill set. And because of that, they’re not going to treat us like the same person. I’ve been part of certain organizations where they coach everyone in the defensive line room the same.”

Williams stands a powerful 6-foot-5 and 310 pounds. He’s equally adept at bull rushing opposing quarterbacks from the interior as he is occupying combination blocks in run defense to free up Jones and second-level defenders to make plays – if he doesn’t before they get there.

But he’s not the same player as Murphy, a shorter interior defender who wins with leverage, burst off the line and speed.

“We’re all unique in our own ways,” Williams said. “This team does a good job of leaning into our uniqueness and allowing us to let it shine.”

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Love shares that sentiment. He spent four years with the New York Giants before signing with Seattle in 2023. He went from a rotational player to starter under Macdonald beginning last season.

“I think the best thing [Macdonald] has done is to be vulnerable and let us be us,” Love said. “We’re very goofy, we’re unserious… but as soon as we cross the white lines, we’re all business.”

“They have to build trust, they have to have the accountability,” Durde said. “Then how do you get there? All of your fundamentals you build, your understanding of the system, your communication pre- and post-snap. If you can build that, then you’ll be in the right position to make the play you need to make.”

Those fundamentals spill beyond the starters. Great defenses like Seattle’s have depth across all levels with a standard that doesn’t change if a big name misses time with injury.

Safety Ty Okada went undrafted in 2023 and signed with the Seahawks. He bounced between the practice squad and active roster before carving out a bigger role this season. He made 11 fill-in starts in 17 games when injuries came up in the secondary and the unit marched on.

“They let you know how much faith they have in you,” Okada said. “They want you to grow not only as a football player but as a person. They just breathe a bunch of confidence in you which is awesome. I couldn’t ask for anything better from a set of coaches and I’m very thankful for it.”

Those 11 starts yielded many career firsts for Okada. His first sack in Week 3 against New Orleans; his first pass breakup in Week 5 versus Tampa Bay; his first interception in Week 9 at Washington.

LANDOVER, MARYLAND – NOVEMBER 02: Ty Okada #39 of the Seattle Seahawks celebrates his interception with teammates during the second quarter against the Washington Commanders in the game at Northwest Stadium on November 02, 2025 in Landover, Maryland.

“Someone like Ty, once they start making the plays and they know they can make and actually do it, then suddenly they relax and they all be themselves,” Durde said.

The standard is set regardless of the name on the jersey or the journey to their role.

“We’re going to be loose and focused,” Macdonald said. “That’s how we roll. So the loose part is we’re going to enjoy it… we’re also going to be focused like that we have an accountability to our process and the things that we need to do to go play our best.”