The Seattle Seahawks are going from the oldest NFL head coach to the youngest.
Three weeks after parting ways with 72-year-old Pete Carroll, the Seahawks are expected to hire 36-year-old Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald as their new head coach. ESPN's Adam Schefter first reported Wednesday, citing league sources.
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Macdonald became an intriguing candidate after his work with the Ravens over the past two seasons. He was on John Harbaugh's staff as an assistant from 2014 to 2020, spent one season as DC under Jim Harbaugh at the University of Michigan in 2021 and then moved back to the NFL with Baltimore in 2022.
This season under Macdonald, the Ravens' defense ranked first in sacks (60), first in fewest points allowed (16.5 per game) and sixth in yards allowed. While Baltimore lost in the AFC Championship Game, it wasn't because of Macdonald's defense, as it held Patrick Mahomes and Co. scoreless in the second half of the 17-10 loss.
The Seahawks are turning the page from Carroll to Macdonald despite a respectable 9-8 season. Seattle was one of the NFL's most consistent teams under Carroll, never finishing with fewer than seven wins and making the playoffs 10 times in 14 seasons.
Macdonald will join a team with several talented pieces on both sides of the ball. The offense is led by veteran quarterback Geno Smith, running back Kenneth Walker and receivers DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. On defense, Seattle has a pair of talented young cornerbacks in Devon Witherspoon and Riq Woolen and a safety duo of Quandre Diggs and Julian Love.
NFL
With Macdonald headed to Seattle, the Washington Commanders are the final NFL team still looking for a head coach.