The discourse around NFL teams is often centered around the quarterback and the head coach. Are they good enough? Should the team move on from them? Do they need more help? Fair enough, but oftentimes, the architects pulling the strings behind them aren't mentioned as often.
At least, that's the case with those who do a good job. Usually, whenever a general manager is a constant talking point, it's for all the wrong reasons. Good executives, like owners, often work in the shadows.
That's why, now that the Seattle Seahawks have punched their Super Bowl tickets, John Schneider should get the hat tip of all hat tips. He's officially turned the team back into a championship contender.
Seattle Seahawks GM John Schneider deserves his flowers
As pointed out by senior NFL researcher Dante Koplowitz-Feming of Good Morning Football, Schneider has become the first general manager to make multiple Super Bowls with the same franchise while having a completely different roster and coaching staff.
Schneider took the reins of the team in 2010. He oversaw the roster during the Russell Wilson and Legion of Boom era, with the Seahawks making it to consecutive Super Bowls in 2013 and 2014 and winning one (you should've run the ball, Pete Carroll).
He made the tough call to pull the plug on Wilson once the time came, and the team is back to the big game for the first time in 12 years. He deserves credit for trusting Sam Darnold when some people still had doubts about him, and that three-year, $100 million deal is looking like a bargain.
Schneider also has a long track record of success in the NFL Draft. From Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor, and Richard Sherman in the first two years in charge all the way to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Kenneth Walker III, Devon Witherspoon, Nick Emmanwori, and everyone in between, he's successfully built two juggernauts.
Of course, Mike Macdonald also deserves all the praise he can get for what he's done in just two years in charge of the team. He's brought back this team's gritty defensive identity after some years stuck in football limbo.
Then again, the guy doing the grocery shopping should also make the frontpage. Not many executives can keep their jobs for over a decade in today's NFL, and with this team set to stay competitive for years to come, it would be a major surprise if he doesn't continue to call the shots for a very long time.