RENTON, Wash. – As he entered the Virginia Mason Athletic Center Auditorium on Tuesday, trailed by new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald turned to the assembled media and said:
“This is going to be the most electric press conference of all time. Get ready.”
If his wry smile didn’t highlight the intended irony, the ensuing 30 minutes definitely did. Sitting side by side, Macdonald and Kubiak outlined a shared offensive vision. In doing so, they filled a bingo board with buzz words and football phrases – complementary football, fundamentals, physicality, the bedrock of recycled coaching cliches.
The news conference was decidedly not electric.
Which, perhaps, was the point.
“Every year you’ve got to keep evolving and studying the league and changing your concepts up a little bit. But the fundamentals, they’re not going to change,” said Kubiak, previously the offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints (2024) and Minnesota Vikings (2021). “So I think those are the things we have to harp on (with) the players, is being fundamentally sound.
“All the bells and whistles will come. But the most important thing is that we get good at the fundamental stuff: throwing, catching, blocking. No matter what we do schematically, it always comes down to that and being good at that.”
Ryan Grubb – who was fired last month after a single season as Seahawks offensive coordinator – brought bells and whistles galore. His offense finished fifth in the NFL in completion percentage (69.6%), seventh in total pass attempts (593) and eighth in passing yards (4,020). Last May, quarterback Geno Smith told radio host Jim Rome: “I’ve seen plays (in Grubb’s playbook) that I have never seen before, and that’s something to say for a 12-year veteran.”
None of which matters if you can’t protect the passer or efficiently run the ball.
Hindered by an injured and inconsistent offensive line, the Seahawks sat 17th among NFL teams in yards per carry (4.2), 21st in third-down conversions (37.6%), 28th in rush yards per game (95.7) and 29th in rush attempts (383), and they allowed the third-most sacks (54).
Besides Seattle, the bottom 10 teams in total rush attempts compiled a combined record of 45-108 (.294), with zero playoff appearances.
As for the top six teams in rush attempts? Philadelphia (621), Baltimore (554), Detroit (534), Pittsburgh (533), Washington (526) and Green Bay (526) all qualified for postseason play.
“I think you look at the world champions (Philadelphia) right now, and they had a heck of a year running the football,” noted Kubiak, who served as the 49ers’ passing-game coordinator in 2023 and the Broncos’ quarterbacks coach and passing-game coordinator in 2022.
In football, electricity typically equates to trick plays or explosive aerials.
But the Seahawks’ news conference mirrored their offensive intent.
In other words: Forget the flash. In its place, put fundamentals and physical play. Put a grinding ground game designed to dominate short-yardage and red-zone opportunities. Put ball security, time of possession … and, yes, an in-the-flesh fullback.
Put balance, a quality Grubb publicly coveted but never actually attained.
“If you drop back 50 times a game, it’s tough,” said Kubiak, the son of longtime coach Gary Kubiak. “You’ve got to be a balanced team. I think balance is important. Sometimes you do have to drop back 50 times to win the game, and sometimes you’ve got to run it 50 times. But when it all comes through, we want to be balanced. We want to be able to win multiple ways.”
Of course, wanting to win isn’t nearly enough. Heck, Kubiak’s two seasons as an offensive coordinator offer ample evidence, as New Orleans (5-12) and Minnesota (8-9) both limped across the finish line. The 2024 Saints ranked 11th in the NFL in red-zone touchdown percentage (58.1%), 13th in yards per carry (4.4), 14th in rush yards per game (114.9), 21st in total rush attempts (444), 21st in total offense (5,442 yards), 24th in points per game (19.9) and 28th in third-down conversions (35.2%).
Granted, New Orleans’ roster didn’t inspire envy. But can Kubiak’s staff evaluate and develop a dominant offensive line? Can it maximize Smith, running back Kenneth Walker III and wide receivers Jaxon Smith-Njigba and DK Metcalf? Can it do what Grubb didn’t?
It’s easy to circle where the last guy struggled.
It’s decidedly more difficult to implement actual change.
“I think if you just start trying to patch Band-Aids from previous shortcomings, it’s probably not the best way to do it long term. It’s not probably the most sustainable solution,” Macdonald said of Seattle’s red-zone strategy. “But you think about what does produce in the red zone. It’s the ability to run the ball, having an identity, getting the ball moving forward, keeping the ball moving forward, taking pressure off the quarterback. I think that’s what Klint’s shown he’s been able to do, and it’s going to be a team effort.”
Time will tell if Kubiak’s bringing a box of Band-Aids, or a blueprint for sustainable success.
For Macdonald and general manager John Schneider, the importance of this hire cannot be overstated, especially after Grubb’s single-season split. In Kubiak, they’re betting on an established NFL name, a proven system and a replicated recipe. They’re betting on a return to no-frills football, the kind that controls clock and inflicts an unflinching physical style.
They’re betting that electricity isn’t everything.