The 2026 Seattle Seahawks coaching staff is set!
On Thursday, the Seahawks announced the full coaching staff for their impending title defense campaign. Head coach Mike Macdonald attempted to keep most of the gang around for a crack at another Lombardi Trophy, but a few of his top assistants have since moved on to other teams.
Let’s see what changes were made on the coaching side this off-season.
Offensive coaching changes
Brian Fleury (offensive coordinator): Fleury will be succeeding Klint Kubiak as Seattle’s OC for 2026, as the
latter has accepted the Las Vegas Raiders’ head coaching job. A former Kyle Shanahan assistant in San Francisco, Fleury served in various roles on the 49ers’ coaching staff between 2019 and 2025, including run game coordinator last season. Though he has never been an offensive coordinator before, Fleury has been considered for the position in the past; as reported by Field Gulls’ Mookie Alexander, the Patriots interviewed the then-Niners assistant for their OC job in 2024 before ultimately going with Alex Van Pelt.
John Benton (senior offensive assistant/offensive line): 2026 will be Benton’s second season as the Seahawks’ offensive line coach, but it will be his first with the additional title of senior offensive assistant. The 62-year-old followed Kubiak to Seattle after a year with the New Orleans Saints in 2024, but Kubiak opted for a different Seahawks assistant, Rick Dennison, as his o-line coach in Las Vegas. Benton has been an offensive line coach for several NFL teams dating back to 2003, initially joining Mike Martz’s staff in St. Louis after spending eight years coaching Colorado State’s o-line from 1995 to 2002.
Thomas Hammock (senior offensive assistant/running backs): After seven years as the head coach for Northern Illinois University, Hammock will be serving on a coaching staff with Mike Macdonald once again. The 44-year-old was previously the Baltimore Ravens’ running backs coach from 2014 to 2018, back when Macdonald first made the jump to the NFL from the college ranks. Hammock possesses a wealth of experience as a running backs coach, working in this capacity for three collegiate institutions before joining the Ravens alongside Macdonald in 2014.
Michael Byrne (assistant tight ends): Byrne will be entering his third year as an NFL coach, and his second with the Seahawks. Another former Kubiak assistant, Byrne also joined Seattle following a year with the Saints in 2024, most recently sharing duties as interim co-running backs coach with Justin Outten after Kennedy Polamalu took a leave of absence. Byrne will spend 2026 working under Mack Brown as the team’s assistant tight ends coach.
Quinshon Odom (assistant offensive line): Odom has been on Macdonald’s Seahawks staff since the beginning, but he will be in a new position this year. The third-year Seattle assistant will be taking Justin Outten’s old assistant o-line position after the latter was promoted to run game coordinator. Odom first worked as an NFL coach in 2022, joining Matt LaFleur’s staff in Green Bay via the Bill Walsh diversity coaching fellowship.
Justin Outten (off. run game coordinator): Outten is now the Seahawks’ offensive run game coordinator, receiving the promotion upon Rick Dennison’s decision to join Kubiak’s Raiders staff. Previously a contender to succeed Vegas’s new head coach as Seattle’s OC, Outten will be taking the next step forward with the Seahawks’ ground game. This will be his second season with the Seahawks, having served as the team’s run game specialist and assistant offensive line coach in 2025.
Jake Peetz (off. passing game coordinator/quarterbacks): Peetz will be taking on the role of quarterbacks coach in 2026 while also retaining his prior position as offensive passing game coordinator. The QBs coach opening became available following Andrew Janocko’s departure for Las Vegas, where he will be joining Kubiak as the Raiders’ offensive coordinator. Peetz will be serving as quarterbacks coach alongside Tyson Prince.
Tyson Prince (quarterbacks): Janocko’s move to Vegas will usher in a tandem of quarterbacks coaches for the Seahawks, with Prince set to serve as co-QBs coach with the aforementioned Jake Peetz. Prince has been on Macdonald’s coaching staff since 2024, earning a promotion from assistant wide receivers coach for 2026.
Daniel Stern (pass game strategist): Stern reunites with Macdonald in Seattle, having worked under John Harbaugh in Baltimore for the last 10 years. Most recently, Stern was the Ravens’ director of football strategy and assistant QBs coach, aiding with some of the more technical aspects of the game, like “assisting with the playbook, call sheet, opponent analysis and self-scouting, as well as scripting situational periods of practice and advising on in-game clock/game management and coaches’ challenges” (via Seahawks.com). A Yale graduate, Stern will surely be one of Macdonald’s sharpest assistants with the Seahawks.
Johnathan Williams (offensive assistant): 2026 will be Williams’s first opportunity on an NFL coaching staff, having spent the last eight years in various capacities on several collegiate staffs. Last year, Williams worked at South Carolina State as the program’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, holding those same positions with Benedict College in 2024. Before turning to coaching, Williams played quarterback at Grambling State University, earning SWAC Offensive Player of the Year honors upon finishing first among all FCS QBs in touchdown passes in 2015.
Defensive coaching changes
Kirk Olivadotti (senior defensive assistant): 2026 will be Olivadotti’s third season in Seattle, earning a promotion from inside linebackers coach following two years in that position with the team. Olivadotti first worked with Macdonald under Mark Richt at the University of Georgia from 2011 to 2013, his only three years away from the now-Washington Commanders between 2000 and 2018.
Josh Bynes (outside linebackers): Entering his third year of coaching, Bynes will succeed Chris Partridge as outside linebackers coach. The 36-year-old spent the last two seasons as a defensive assistant and linebackers coach under defensive coordinator Aden Durde.
Zach Orr (inside linebackers): Perhaps one of the most high-profile additions to Seattle’s coaching staff, Orr will be filling Olivadotti’s previous post as the Seahawks’ new inside linebackers coach. Orr spent 11 years with the Ravens organization between 2014 and 2025, turning to coaching in 2017 following a brief playing career. The 33-year-old served in various roles on Baltimore’s coaching staff, where he was eventually promoted to defensive coordinator in 2024.
Chris Partridge (def. run game coordinator): Partridge is transitioning to defensive run game coordinator after serving as outside linebackers coach for the last two seasons. Like Macdonald, Partridge is a former assistant on Jim Harbaugh’s staff at the University of Michigan, working as the program’s LBs coach during its 2023 national championship run.
Keller Chryst (defensive quality control): Chryst is moving over to the Seahawks’ coaching staff for 2026, having previously aided the team with special projects and football analysis. The nephew of former University of Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst, Seattle’s new defensive quality control coach spent some time in the Big Ten himself, working under Kirk Ferentz at Iowa as a football analyst for two seasons.
While several of Macdonald’s most notable assistants have gone elsewhere, others have stayed on. Some assistants have taken on new positions, helping to provide some stability while advancing to the next stages of their coaching careers. Although many 12s would have liked for Kubiak to stay on for another year, they can feel confident in knowing that assistants like Benton and Outten are remaining in the Pacific Northwest for the team’s impending title defense.
On top of this, Aden Durde has been very consistent with his defensive staff. Much of the personnel changes on his side of the ball pertaining to promotions and new positions, with Zach Orr being the most noteworthy addition to Seattle’s defensive coaches.
It’s also worth mentioning that the Seahawks’ special teams personnel are not going anywhere, with coordinator Jay Harbaugh and assistant Devin Fitzsimmons coming back for 2026. Their wizardry helped in some crucial spots in 2025, and will certainly be an asset once again this season.
Here’s to the new hires and promotions on the coaching staff!
