Seattle, WA
Carolina Panthers rookie reveals how Seattle Seahawks defense caught them off guard
The Panthers Played 1920s Football In The 2020s
The Carolina Panthers had 40 net yards passing on Sunday, in a game where they never once held the lead. Bryce Young averaged 1.54 yards per dropback on plays that didn’t end in him scrambling. Jalen Coker led the team in receiving yards, nearly doubling second place, with sixteen of them. Stud rookie Tet McMillan had five yards. WR2 Xavier Leggette had three yards.
It’s safe to say that whatever buttons Mike Macdonald and Aden Durde pushed before and during this game, they were the correct buttons to push. This is the kind of one-sided dominance that you’d expect to see in a college game, where Alabama plays against Troy, or Oregon draws Idaho. Maybe against a fourth string quarterback who has no business playing.
But this was former #1 overall pick Bryce Young, starting quarterback for a Carolina Panthers team that has playoff aspirations with one week to go. They had all their starters except for right guard Rob Hunt, who has been missing for some time anyway. This Panthers team has upset the Los Angeles Rams and beaten the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the last month.
It’s a real team. But when it came to throwing the ball on this particular Sunday, they didn’t really look like one. And don’t forget to consider that their running game was perfectly competent as well, averaging about four yards a carry before a couple of game-ending kneeldowns. How did Seattle do it? Star receiver Tetairoa McMillan chimed in after the game.
McMillan Explains It All
In a locker room interview shortly after the game ended, McMillan referenced how Seattle caught Carolina off-guard by playing more man coverage than expected.
“I think it just caught us by surprise. And obviously it puts more pressure on the quarterback, because they get back there faster,” he explained. “But then, at the same time, it’s up to the receivers to get open. To create a clear picture for Bryce.”
McMillan’s lone catch of the day came with 3:47 left in the fourth quarter, Carolina down by ten and deep in their own territory. Facing 4th and 17, Bryce Young checked it down over the middle to Tet, who was quickly tackled by Julian Love to get the ball back to Seattle’s offense. It was a day to forget for him in particular, who has had an excellent rookie campaign to this point.
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It certainly makes sense why Carolina wouldn’t expect Seattle to play much man defense. According to data collected by Football Insights, Seattle’s defense is in zone on 78% of their snaps and in man coverage on just 17% (the remaining 5% is plays where the coverage type wasn’t clear). The split in the previous six games is 78%/21%.
There are a few other teams that play man less than Seattle, but not many, which goes well with their near-league low blitz rate. So you can certainly understand why Carolina wasn’t anticipating anything different. After all, the way in which Seattle has played defense all season has resulted in one of the best squads in football and inside track to the top seed in the NFC.
But Macdonald clearly saw an advantage in switching things up, a luxury afforded to him with elite cover corners like Devon Witherspoon and Riq Woolen on the field. Clearly, former Seahawk coach Dave Canales wasn’t ready for it, and on a day where Seattle needed an elite defensive performance to get the win, this was a big part of the formula.
This is the sort of thing that Seattle will hopefully have in their back pocket come postseason time, when the edges are small and unexpected coaching adjustments can make a big difference. With the offense having some issues in recent weeks, the defense may need to be elite to get wins, so it’s good to have a Mike Macdonald on your side.
West Seattle pickleball players rallied this week as they ramp up opposition to Seattle Parks‘ Draft Outdoor Racquet-Sports Strategy, which would – among other things – change dual-striped courts at High Point and Alki to tennis-only. Next milepost along the way: Tomorrow night (Thursday, April 23), the Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners – a city-convened advisory group – gets briefed on the “strategy.” Though board meetings usually have a public-comment period, the department is directing comments to the three feedback meetings (none in West Seattle, though some local advocates are trying to get one set up). The advocate who contacted us says they’re trying to “show their support to save these vital community resources. These courts are used by hundreds of people every week to stay active and connect with neighbors. We have no idea why the city would seek to do away with such highly used and inclusive gathering places.” They’re describing what they’re doing as a “WS-specific effort … aimed at saving pickleball at Walt Hundley and Alki. We are planning another larger rally on a weekend in Mid/Late May where we hope to turn out the entire West Seattle pickleball community and invite our local elected leaders and city officials to see how many lives are touched by pickleball in West Seattle.” In the meantime, they’re continuing to collect petition signatures here. Tomorrow night’s Parks Board meeting is being held in person downtown and via Zoom at 6 pm – attendance info is here.
over at Bleeding Green Nation. During the off-season, he’s been writing his mock
draft blog and just wrote up–a rather lengthy–mock pick for the Seahawks at
#32.
Personally, not enamored with the pick, but he does a VERY deep dive into the
offensive and defensive makeup of the Hawks, trying…
After months of build up, the Seattle Seahawks are less than 48 hours from being on the clock for their first pick of the NFL Draft, as long as they hold on to pick No. 32 in the first round.
Seahawks Draft: A mid-round edge rusher with elite length
While the offensive line has long been a need for the Seahawks in drafts, this year running back, edge rusher and cornerback are among their top positions of need.
Former NFL quarterback Brock Huard highlighted a pair of players who could help bolster the Seahawks’ edge group as he continued his draft profile series Tuesday during Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk.
In this edition of Huard’s draft profiles, he looked at Michigan edge rushers Derrick Moore and Jaishawn Barham, who also played on the same team together in high school at St. Frances Academy in Baltimore.
Huard pointed to the connection head coach Mike Macdonald, a former Michigan defensive coordinator, and many members of his coaching staff have to the Michigan program.
“They know these guys, they know them inside and out,” Huard said. “They typically like they’re Michigan men, and these are two physical guys that have all the attributes you’re looking for on the edge.”
The high-floor pick
Moore is coming off a decorated four-year career at Michigan where he piled up 24.5 tackles for loss, 21 sacks, eight passes defended and three forced fumbles in 53 games.
This past season, the 6-foot-3, 255-pound Moore totaled 10.5 tackles for loss, 10 sacks and two forced fumbles while earning first-team All-Big Ten honors.
“I think this is a pretty fair quote about him: ‘Unselfish, well-rounded, high floor.’ Is he a high-ceiling guy? Not as much as Barham, but he’s a very high-floor guy,” Huard said.
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah has Moore ranked as the No. 65 prospect in this years draft. ESPN has him ranked 60th.
“He is just your fierce, tough, edgy, productive (player),” Huard said. “He played in space a little bit more. They are field-boundary scheme at Michigan at times. He’s been more of the field rusher, more against your left tackle. And (he’s) just got more in the tool bag… He’s been a defensive end. He’s pretty well versed in it. He’s going to have a bigger tool bag, I think, than both Boye (Mafe) and Derrick Hall had, and he’s going to be a second, late-second-round (pick). Rugged, tough Michigan guy.”
The high-ceiling pick
Barham spent his first two college seasons at Maryland, which included earning Freshman All-American honors in 2022, and transferred to Michigan in 2024. He played linebacker at Maryland and in his first season at Michigan before making the move to edge for his final college season.
In 12 games at a new position in 2025, the 6-foot-3, 240-pound Barham amassed 10 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks.
“Jaishawn Barham is a little bit more of a wild card, and one of the scouts that was quoted in some of the prep for this said he may bloom with the right coaching,” Huard said.
Huard recalled seeing Barham as a freshman at Maryland while he was doing color commentary for FOX and being in awe of how physically mature he already looked.
“I remember being on the field, as a freshman, looking at him going, ‘There’s just no way. There’s no way humanly possible that that guy played high school football the year before,’” Huard said.
Jeremiah has Barham ranked as the No. 77 prospect in the draft. ESPN has him ranked 88th.
“He is a higher ceiling guy you’re going to have to coach up,” Huard said. “He doesn’t come with years and years and years of experience on the edge.”
Seattle Seahawks NFL Draft coverage
• An under-the-radar Seattle Seahawks need Brock Huard sees
• NFL Draft: What – and who – Seahawks could get by trading back
• Why Hasselbeck says Seahawks are in great spot to trade back
• Seattle Seahawks open to trading top pick for bigger draft class
• A player Seahawks could trade for another draft pick
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