The Detroit Lions and Baltimore Ravens both lost on Sunday in their respective conference championship games. This is likely good and bad for most Seattle Seahawks fans. Most of us might not care about the AFC so much, be a lot of us probably want the San Francisco 49ers to lose. But the Lions and Ravens losing means Seattle is free to interview coaches Ben Johnson of Detroit and Mike Macdonald of Baltimore.
Both coaches looked solid in the championship games even though their teams lost. Johnson's Lions scored 31 points and had 442 total yards (6.1 yards per play) against a very good 49ers defense. Macdonald's Ravens allowed 17 points against the Chiefs but none in the second half and just 319 total yards.
The question for Seattle is whether they potentially want to go with Johnson or Macdonald and hire a first-time NFL head coach or if Seattle wants to possibly hire Dan Quinn. There are only two teams that need head coaches right now so Seattle should have its choice of almost any coach. If they choose Macdonald, he potentially could try to bring these three Ravens with him.
Seattle Seahawks should think of signing linebacker Patrick Queen
Before I go on, I should point out that while I can be an idiot I am not trying to say that the Seahawks can sign all three of the players on this list. Just one of the players would make Seattle's defense better especially as the player would already know what Macdonald wants from his defenses. There is a possibility that once Seattle clears so cap room they could sign two of these players but definitely not all three.
But I will start with Patrick Queen as the Seahawks literally have no proven inside linebackers currently on the 2024 roster. Bobby Wagner, Jordyn Brooks, and Devin Bush are all free agents. Seattle should be happy to see Bush leave and re-sign Brooks, but Wagner is the biggest question. He was good in 2023 but is aging. Queen and Brooks would form a formidable ILB duo and Queen is also just 24 years old.
Queen does not have any real weaknesses and he would instantly be Seattle's best coverage linebacker. While that has been a problem for the Seahawks defense for a number of years, a coaching change to Macdonald should remedy this issue. Queen also has 48 total pressures over the last two years, second-best among inside linebackers in the league. Seattle would just need to clear space to pay Queen what Pro Football Focus (subscription required) estimates as $72.5 million over four years for Queen's next deal.
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Seattle could add defensive end Jadeveon Clowney
Clowney could be the second of two Ravens to come to Seattle. The reason is that he is less expensive than the other two players on this list and should make less than $10 million in 2024. For a veteran of Clowney's ability and potential, that number could be a steal. Plus, Clowney seemed to flourish under Mike Macdonald.
This season, Clowney (who, of course, played for the Seahawks for one season previously in 2019) tied a career-high in sacks with 9.5, and set career highs in highest pressure rate, highest pass-rush win rate, and most total pressures in a season (71). PFF graded Clowney as the 14th-best edge rusher in the NFL this year.
Macdonald was able to use Clowney in a number of blitzing schemes while also making him a lot more versatile. Instead of how Seattle used him mostly in 2019, which was to tell Clowney to go line up at defensive end and help stop the run and not get much help, Macdonald was able to take advantage of all of Clowney's immense skills.
Clowney will be 31 years old in 2024 but he has shown no signs that he is about to slow down. He also played a full season for the first time since 2017. Bringing Clowney back to Seattle immediately would improve both the run defense and pass rush.
Seahawks could bring in defensive tackle Justin Madubuike
Madubuike might be the player that most wants to follow Macdonald anywhere the coach goes if Macdonald does leave the Ravens. The reason I say this is that while Madubuike has always had a high motor and has given maximum effort, his use and production have not always been first-rate. But in Macdonald's second season as defensive coordinator in Baltimore, Madubuike found his place in the defense and his numbers exploded.
This year, the 26-year-old defensive lineman had a career high in sacks (13), quarterback hits (33), and tackle for loss (12). His previous high in those categories was 5.5, 9, and 8, respectively. Madubuike wasn't just slightly more productive than in previous seasons; his sacks and quarterbacks hits in 2023 were more than his previous three seasons combined.
Why would Madubuike want to leave playing under Macdonald as he knows the coach has made him into the kind of player who is going to get a massive payday this offseason but probably get him to a massive payday after his next contract is up as well. According to PFF, Madubuike's next deal could pay him $92 million over four years with $60.25 million of that being guaranteed. The Seahawks would have to clear off a ton of cap room to pay Madubuike.
Like Patrick Queen, however, Madubuike does not have any real weaknesses. He is a better pass rusher at this point than a run-stopper, but he isn't bad in run defense either. Adding Madubuike would anchor Macdonald's Seattle defensive line for years to come.