Depending on which handicappers you prefer, the Seattle Seahawks are the second, third, or fourth choice to win the Super Bowl in 2026. Everyone has their rivals, the Los Angeles Rams, as the top choice to win it all. But if you project a little farther into the future, one recent analysis suggests that the Seahawks are still the strongest team in the NFL.
A team of experts at ESPN recently ranked all 32 NFL teams – not for 2026, but for 2027-2029. Their conclusion? Seattle, with John Schneider and Mike Macdonald running the show and with a deep, talented, and above all, young roster, inspires quite a bit of confidence in the years ahead.
The analysis assigned grades in four specific areas – coaching, front office, roster (excluding quarterback), and quarterback. Seattle was one of five teams in the league that ranked in the top ten in three of the four categories.
New analysis paints a very bright future for the Seattle Seahawks
They ranked in the middle of the pack – 16th – at the quarterback position. They finished in the top three in the other categories, the only team to have such elite scores in three different areas. That landed them in first place overall.
The Hawks were followed in the top five by Philadelphia, Detroit, Denver, and Los Angeles. The bad news is that four of the top five teams (and five of the top seven if you include Green Bay) reside in the NFC. If accurate, simply getting out of the conference may well be a bigger challenge than winning the Super Bowl. That certainly was true last season.
San Francisco ranked 14th overall, knocked out of the top ten by a poor grade for the front office and for the non-QB roster that the front office has assembled.
The other NFC West team, Arizona, brought up the rear, finishing 32nd. Well, I guess someone had to be last.
The Rams are the team everyone is most worried about right now. They had the top-rated coaching staff along with top-ten scores for both the non-QB roster and front office. What knocked them back was finishing 24th at QB. Remember, these grades are looking down the road to the years when Matthew Stafford will (most likely) be out of the league.
I think you could make the case that putting Seattle’s QB situation at 16 is a little dismissive. Sam Darnold is not even 30 yet, and he should have erased all doubt about his ability to win last year. Perhaps he isn’t an elite QB, but he feels closer to number 10 than to 16.
Of course, the real strength in Seattle resides in the overwhelming amount of young talent they possess. Nick Emmanwori, Byron Murphy II, Jaxon Smith-Njigba … all under 25. These aren’t merely good players. They are elite game changers.
A host of excellent talent under 27 – Rashid Shaheed, Abraham Lucas, Ernest Jones IV, Charles Cross, and Grey Zabel – should be valuable contributors for years to come.
In general manager John Schneider, they have someone who will not only continue to identify and acquire quality talent, but who will also make smart moves in maintaining his roster. The recent extension for Devon Witherspoon (25-year-old Devon Witherspoon, that is) is a testament to how well-oiled the machinery is in Seattle.
And in Mike Macdonald, the Seahawks may well have the next elite defensive-minded head coach in the league. Macdonald is the first defensive-minded head man to win the Super Bowl since some guy named Belichick did it all the way back in 2019. And before Belichick, you have to go back to Pete Carroll in Super Bowl XLVIII.
Of course, continued success will make it harder to retain the outstanding assistant coaches Macdonald has employed. Klint Kubiak has already left. Perhaps Aden Durde will be next.
And more winning means higher salaries for the players, which will almost certainly result in a loss of talent. Kenneth Walker III is now in Kansas City, and three prominent defenders are gone from last year’s team as well.
Then again, as long as Schneider is on hand to continually replenish the roster, and Macdonald is around to coach them, and the genuine superstars like JSN and Spoon are taken care of as they have been, I like Seattle’s chances to stay at or near the top over the next three to five years.
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