The Seattle Seahawks are back in the Super Bowl for the first time since the 2014 season when they were still led by head coach Pete Carroll, the “Legion of Boom” defense, quarterback Russell Wilson and running back Marshawn “Beast Mode” Lynch. They’re rolling into Super Bowl LX against the New England Patriots after a 31-27 victory over the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday.Â
Seattle had just 60-1 odds to reach the Super Bowl this season, which means they had the fourth-longest preseason Super Bowl odds by a team that made the Super Bowl in the 21st century. Only the 2016 Atlanta Falcons (80-1), the 2025 Patriots (80-1) and the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals (150-1) had longer odds to reach the big game. So how did the Seahawks break through to win the NFC? Here are the top five top reasons we’ll see Seattle in Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8.Â
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5. All-Pro play at all three levels of Seahawks’ No. 1 scoring defense
Sometimes there are top 10-scoring defenses like the Los Angeles Rams’ where all the high-end talent is congregated in one area. For the Rams, that’s their defensive line. The Seahawks have All-Pro-caliber talent at all three levels — defensive line, linebackers and secondary — of their defense.Â
Seattle has second-team All-Pro defensive tackle Leonard Williams anchoring the interior, Pro Bowl edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence on the end of the line, second-team All-Pro linebacker Ernest Jones IV in the middle and second-team All-Pro cornerback Devon Witherspoon as their No. 1 outside corner. The versatility that talent gives head coach Mike Macdonald is invaluable to the Seahawks’ No. 1 scoring defense (17.2 points per game allowed).Â
4. Jaxon Smith-Njigba
No one had more receiving yards in the 2025 season than Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s 1,793, and his presence allows the rest of the Seahawks’ offense to function. In the NFC Championship Game victory against the Rams, he went off for 153 yards receiving and a touchdown on 10 catches, but what’s also just as impressive is Smith-Njgba caught at least one target against six different Los Angeles defenders.
The Rams tried everyone, but it didn’t work. On the broadcast, Tom Brady spoke about the way Smith-Njigba aligns his shoulders in the same neutral position on his routes to avoid having tells for what routes he’s running as if he is a professional poker player. There’s no telling where Seattle would be without JSN.Â
3. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak’s work with Sam Darnold
Quarterback Sam Darnold produced career highs in completion percentage (67.7%) and yards per pass attempt (8.5) in offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak’s offense. In teaming up with Kubiak, Darnold became a more efficient passer while still creating big plays. His 35 completions of 25-plus yards were the sixth-most in the NFL. Yes, the league-high 20 turnovers weren’t ideal, but there was greater value in Darnold being more of a threat than an aging Geno Smith to take the top off the defense with a shot down the field.
Darnold’s 11.4 yards per pass attempt on play-actions was the second-most in the NFL this season while producing the league’s fifth-best passer rating on such throws at 123.1. That’s why Kubiak dialed up play-action passes on 26.9% of Darnold’s plays, the eighth-highest rate in the NFL.Â
Darnold having offensive continuity by continuing to work with an offensive coordinator in Kubiak, who is part of the Shanahan-McVay tree, after his breakout with Kevin O’Connell on the Minnesota Vikings in 2024 was instrumental to his success this season. Add all that up, and it led to the Seahawks having the NFL’s No. 3 scoring offense at 28.4 points per game.Â
|
Completion percentage |
67.7%* |
7th |
|
Pass yards |
4,048 |
5th |
|
Yards per pass attempt |
8.5* |
2nd |
|
Pass TD |
25 |
T-9th |
| Passer rating | 99.1 | 11th |
| Sacks taken | 27* | T-14th |
* Career bests with seven-plus starts in a season
2. Head coach Mike Macdonald’s defenseÂ
The Seahawks having the NFL’s No. 1 scoring defense obviously has plenty to do with Seattle’s on-field talent, but Macdonald’s role in finding just the right blend with that talent is why he’s so high on this list. Seattle’s defense used five or more defensive backs on an NFL-high 92.6% of its defense snaps while using its base personnel on an NFL-low 6.2% of the time, per NFL Pro.
The preferred formation of choice when doing so, nickel (five defensive backs), resulted in the unit allowing just 4.7 yards per play, the fourth-lowest in the league when doing so. Macdonald’s ability to maximize his talent with various zone coverage and disguise looks like turning rookie safety Nick Emmanwori into the league’s best pass-rushing/blitzing defensive back — his 18 quarterback pressures led all NFL defensive backs in 2025 — is a big driver in Seattle’s success.Â
1. General manager John Schneider’s historic roster rebuild
According to NFL Media, Seahawks general manager John Schneider is the first general manager in NFL history to reach multiple Super Bowls with the same franchise while having a completely new head coach and roster. Many people view Eagles general manager Howie Roseman as the NFL’s best for his role in building three teams that reached the Super Bowl and two that won it all.
However, what Schneider accomplished in rebuilding the Seahawks from ground zero with the hire of Macdonald and complete roster turnover from the “Legion of Boom”/Russell Wilson era into being the 2025 NFC champions today is the biggest reason Seattle is gearing up for Super Bowl LX right now.Â
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