Well, here we are. Last season, 10 wins was not enough for the Seattle Seahawks to reach the playoffs. Will 10 wins be enough this year? Will they improve and reach 11 wins for the first time since 2020? Most of the Field Gulls staff is picking the ‘Hawks to have a wonderful 50th season and win at least 11 games, with John Fraley serving as the lone dissident. I had to double check to make sure John Gilbert wasn’t writing under Fraley’s name, and indeed Gilbert has some level of optimism.
Stick around
and read our takes, and then we want to read yours!
Mookie Alexander: The ceiling of the Seahawks is directly tied to the offensive line. If preseason was a mirage and they’re actually not that much better than recent teams, Sam Darnold will significantly regress, the Jalen Milroe subpackages won’t work as effectively, and the running game will be inconsistent. Anything approaching league average and the Seahawks will be a dangerous team. Mike Macdonald’s defense should be bare minimum good, with the potential to be great. I think some of the “easier” games on the schedule (e.g. Jacksonville, Carolina) will be tougher than people realize, while they’ll finally have big-time wins against playoff caliber teams. I’m anticipating a much-improved run game, an efficient if unspectacular year from Darnold, a top 10 defense, but also enough hiccups given how young this team is that they’ll have an absolutely stinker or two along the way. Screw it, it’s time to have a home playoff game in front of fans again. 11-6, win the NFC West over the Rams, win the Wild Card game and lose to the top seed in the Divisional Round.
Tyler Alsin: It boggles my mind that an entire national corner has become believers in Anthony friggin Bradford, but here we are. I am fascinated by this team; I’m fascinated by the tight ends, by Klint Kubiak’s whole thing, by a defense with as much carryover from the previous season as I think I’ve ever seen. I also recognize that Sam Darnold will be important, but perhaps not so much that the team either has 14 wins or 5 wins based on his performance. Finally, I firmly believe the 49ers to be on the verge of terrible, and the in-division sweep of San Francisco will return. 12-5, and one playoff win at the hands of the defense. After that, it does begin to depend on Darnold.
Ted Zahn: After a successful first season under Mike Macdonald largely due to the second half defensive turnaround, we’ll actually see the offense play the style Macdonald prefers – run the damn ball. It won’t always be pretty, but hot damn is it going to be physical! The offense follows the defense from last year and starts to come into form during the second half of the season. Seattle wins the NFC West with an 11-6 record on a tiebreaker with the Los Angeles Rams. They win two playoff games, falling on the road in the NFC Championship game.
Frank T. Raines: Ever the optimist, I’m predicting that the Seahawks will have a top-10 offense and a top-5 defense. The O-line won’t be as good as we hope, but they will be better than they’ve been and they won’t cost us any games. Special Teams could be our Achilles’ heel. Seattle goes 5-1 in the NFC West, 4-0 against the NFC South, and either 4-3 or 3-4 against everyone else. Twelve (or 13) wins should earn Seattle an NFC West title which means Mike Macdonald will deliver the first playoff win of his head coaching career in front of the home crowd at Lumen Field. Go Hawks!
John Tapia: Though on paper Seattle looks to have downgraded at QB and WR, the new outside zone running scheme and actual use of a fullback look to put a lot less pressure on Sam Darnold and this Seahawks offense. Typically, one should not overreact over the preseason, however, that is exactly what I am going to do. This new offense looks to be the perfect marriage to Mike Macdonald’s top-5 defensive unit. Despite a painful looking offense and a defense with growing pains last season, Seattle managed to finish 10-7. This new physical style team in 2025 looks to finish even stronger and make their way into the playoffs after an NFC West victory with an 11-6 record. Seattle manages to win a playoff game and lose in the Divisional round. Though a physical running game is necessary to win in January, so is a QB who can carry the team on their shoulders, I am not confident Sam Darnold can do that.
Patrick Hood: I think this year’s Seahawks team will be stronger than last year’s team. Mike Macdonald has had a year to settle into his role as head coach, and I feel like he will do well with Klint Kubiak running the offense. I’m not sure if Sam Darnold will be quite as good as he was a year ago, but I believe that he will perform well enough to help Seattle return to the playoffs. The Seahawks will finish 12-5, win the NFC West, and lose in the Divisional Round.
Alexandre Castro: I believe the Seahawks have the potential to be much better than last year. Mike Macdonald’s second-year defense should be the team’s biggest strength. With another offseason, the team should be more prepared and make fewer of the fundamental mistakes they made at the beginning of last season. I think what will truly define the Seahawks’ future will be their offense, which will have a new QB and a new OC. My guess is 11-6 and the team making the playoffs as wild card.
Jer’rel Coleman: In a year of major transition on the offensive side of the ball, it may take a few games until Sam Darnold and the air attack have the leeway and capability to fully spread their wings. The Seattle Seahawks will play some gritty, tight games early on that look like old Pete Carroll-type street fights… paced by a reborn Kenneth Walker III on the ground and an ascending young defense. Once the offense starts to click, look out below! Mike Macdonald’s vaunted defensive structure and personnel will eventually propel this team to surprising contender status by the end of the year. It’ll all result in an 11-6 record, a playoff win and a tough playoff loss against a Super Bowl team that will simultaneously bring hope for the future.
Terrance Robinson: Physicists, philosophers, and bloggers surmise that time travel certainly could be possible, with one particular caveat in logic: once in the new timeline, you cannot return to the present. In our case, as loyal Seattle Seahawks fans, our reality is similar, yet opposed: we can never return to the past. Enter the paradox and mind your sneakers. Coach Macdonald, as his predecessor, has set the tone soundly for a physical, run-heavy, and ascending ‘Hawks team. On the cusp of Coach Macdonald’s sophomore season, the roster seems a more proper reflection of his well-researched hypothesis. El Professoro takes the helm of a most desirable squadron, orders the sails unfurled, and the plan for the 2025 season is set into motion: 13 Ws and an iconic playoff loss in the NFC Championship game. Butter.
John Fraley: Contrarian take alert. Let’s say the ugly part first: Seahawks go 8-9 and finish a game behind the division-winning Arizona Cardinals. The NFC West is officially down again, like the good old bad old days.
The offense is a year away, the defense is ready now, and so this team is .500ish. As such, they could easily win 11 games with luck and fortunate bounces and calls, or drop 11 with poor health and bad juju between the lines. The OL is green and lacking in continuity for the hundredth straight season since Hutch left. The WR corps is kinda poopy after JSN, who will command double teams all season and thus fall short of his 2024 production. The TE room is intriguing and promising, poised to pop in 2026. The RBs are good and the FB makes them better. But, oh, and it’s a giant but, Seattle’s QB position took a massive downgrade. Some say it’s the most important position in sports. If Klint Kubiak can conjure a real offense out of spare parts and two game-breakers, then he’s the team MVP. (He will do no such thing.)
The defense kicks so much ass it’s like a different team. Seahawks games will be appointment viewing again as soon as Mike Dickson punts, and that’s something. Just not enough to secure meaningful football in January.
Bryce Coutts: I see the Seahawks going 13–4 this season because this roster is built to win close games and control both sides of the ball. The addition of DeMarcus Lawrence gives the defense a proven veteran pass rusher/ Edge setter to complement a young, aggressive secondary, making Seattle more disruptive against both the run and the pass. On offense, Klint Kubiak’s system fits the personnel perfectly—expect a balanced attack with Sam Darnold leaning on Cooper Kupp & Jaxon Smith-Njigba and a strong run game behind a much-improved offensive line. Combine that with the fact the NFC West is more vulnerable than in past years—San Francisco dealing with injuries, the Rams relying heavily on Stafford’s health, and Arizona still inconsistent—and Seattle has a clear path to double-digit wins and a legitimate shot at taking the division.
(Editor’s note: Here’s Bryce’s full video with his W-L record plus extra predictions)
Michael Thompson: Armed with the best defense this franchise has seen in a decade, Mike Macdonald’s Seahawks will be carried by their top three ranked defense to a NFC West division title. The offense will show flashes, but inconsistency, ultimately limiting this team’s ceiling in 2025. Nonetheless, I have Seattle going 11-6, winning their first home playoff game since 2016, and ultimately falling in a heart breaker to the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round.
John P. Gilbert: The defense should be improved with Macdonald’s scheme in its second season, and the offense should see fewer ups and downs, with less reliance on the big play. With that in mind, they will need the 2024 version of Darnold, and not the Jets or Panthers version, in order to compete in the NFC West. All that said, they should hit double digit wins, but given the schedule rotation has them on easy mode this year facing the AFC South and NFC South, meaning every team in the division has a shot at double digit wins. Don’t be surprised if the NFC West slides three teams into the postseason, and as long as they stay healthy enough to remain competitive, the Seahawks should be one of those teams, but don’t expect them to make it deep into the postseason, with a loss in the divisional round expected.
And now the fun part. It’s your turn! This Google Form is open to everyone (no Field Gulls registration required) to predict the Seahawks’ 2025 season. You’ll be asked how many regular season games they’ll win, their NFC West position, whether they make the playoffs, their number of wins over division rivals, their playoff seeding (if applicable), how far they’ll go in the playoffs (again, if applicable), and their points scored/points allowed ranking range.
Participate below or click this link to go to the Google Form directly!
