Seahawks DC Clint Hurtt basically guarantees Seattle's defense will be better

Clint Hurtt is entering his second season as the Seattle Seahawks' defensive coordinator. But should his job be on the line this season? Mind you, I am not the person to ever call for anyone's job, but Hurtt likely still needs to prove he can lead an NFL defense.

Hurtt has always been a respected coach, especially a position coach. And Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll clearly thinks Hurtt was not only great as a defensive line coach prior to 2022 (and therefore made him the defensive coordinator prior to last season after the termination of former DC Ken Norton, Jr.), but Carroll has the utmost faith in Hurtt moving forward. And Carroll should, to a point.

There is no way to judge how good of a defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt can be after one year on the job. Seattle ranked 25th in team defense in 2022 compared to 12th in 2021. The Seahawks were 13th in passer rating allowed last season compared to 20th the season before. In 2022, Seattle allowed 4.9 yards a rush - 26th in the league - but in 2021, they allowed 3.8 yards a carry - second-best in the league. So was Seattle's defense better last year than the season before Hurtt became DC? Not really.

Seattle Seahawks defense should be better in 2023, per DC Clint Hurtt

But Hurtt was also tasked with breaking in two starting rookie cornerbacks, Tariq Woolen and Coby Bryant, and a remade linebacker group. The defense was inconsistent all season long, great for four weeks between Weeks 6 through 9 but awful at the beginning of the year and then terrible in the playoff game against the 49ers. But 2023 needs to be the year the defense is much better and the season Hurtt needs to prove he can be a long-term DC.

According to Hurtt, "We're going to be better, we're going to improve." One important reason for this will be having Bobby Wagner back. No offense to Jordyn Brooks, but Wagner might simply be a better communicator on the field than Brooks. Many of the problems Seattle had last season were communication breakdowns and players being in the wrong spots.

Sure, Seattle must tackle better this season, and they signed or drafted guys who should excel at that. Stopping the run has to be much improved in 2023, and Seattle should be better in the secondary after taking Devon Witherspoon in the first round. The Seahawks has more talent on defense this season, now Clint Hurtt just needs to prove he can lead the unit to be good.