RENTON, Wash. — John Schneider leaned against the wall inside a crowded Virginia Mason Athletic Center auditorium and listened intently as then-head coach Pete Carroll declared that his resignation (i.e., removal) was taking place because his longtime partner deserved the chance to sit in the big chair.
“He’s great at what he does,” Carroll said of Schneider in his farewell to the Seattle Seahawks on Jan. 10, 2024. “And now he’s going to find out.”
Then, in one of the few moments Carroll was speaking to an audience of one, he looked at Schneider and said, “You’re gonna find out, big fella.”
Carroll’s implication: It is one thing to deserve the big chair; it is another entirely to handle what comes with it.
Nearly two years to the day, Schneider is sitting pretty as one of two main architects behind the best team in the NFC and arguably the most complete operation in the NFL — again.
The Seahawks have won 14 games for the first time in their 50-year franchise history and earned the No. 1 seed for the fourth time; three of those four teams were built in part by Schneider, who was hired as general manager in January 2010. Seattle is now the Super Bowl favorite, per BetMGM.
Although Carroll’s title included vice president of football operations, he and Schneider worked in tandem to build Seattle’s iconic Legion of Boom era Seahawks. More than a decade since Seattle’s last Super Bowl appearance, in February 2015, Schneider not only found a head coach capable of getting the Seahawks back to the promised land, but also gave Mike Macdonald the roster to get it done.
This season has been one of Schneider’s best.
“When we embarked on this journey with Mike, it was important to ownership that we held onto what was here, all the positive vibes,” Seattle assistant general manager Nolan Teasley said. “That was easy to do because John was such a big part of it through Pete being here as well — I just don’t think he got enough credit for it. He’s been a big part of all the success that we’ve had.
“He’s just maintained who he is. … A next-level leader and probably one of the best evaluators in the National Football League.”
In recent years, Schneider has talked in interviews about finding the right people — not just the right talent — for the Seahawks’ roster. It’s a subjective measure, of course, but his ability to hit home runs in that regard was critical to building a championship-caliber roster.
By money allocated to external free agents, Schneider had his most expensive offseason in 2025. Sam Darnold ($100.5 million), Cooper Kupp ($45 million) and DeMarcus Lawrence ($32.5 million) all signed lucrative, multiyear deals; Darnold’s is the richest deal Schneider has ever given an outside free agent. They are effectively the Big Three of Seattle’s 2025 free-agent haul.
The Big Three replaced Geno Smith (traded to the Las Vegas Raiders), DK Metcalf (traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers) and Dre’Mont Jones (released). Smith told ESPN in September he didn’t fit Seattle’s culture, nor did he fit “the aesthetic of the Seattle organization.” Metcalf told ex-Seahawks Marshawn Lynch and Mike Robinson that he felt like an “outsider” once Seattle switched coaches.
Replacing Pro Bowlers at premium positions is bold and challenging. A season like this was only possible because Schneider and staff succeeded.
It is not a coincidence that in a year Seattle took its biggest financial risks, the staff had coaches who were able to vouch for the character of each player and his fit within the culture. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak worked closely with Darnold in 2023. Passing game coordinator Jake Peetz and Kupp were with the Rams for two years. Defensive coordinator Aden Durde was Lawrence’s position coach in Dallas for three years. The front office had faith in the people it was acquiring, and the staff’s familiarity mitigated the risk.
“It’s huge because you feel very comfortable that you’re getting the type of guys that fit in our locker room,” said Matt Berry, vice president of player acquisition. “You are investing in guys that you know are going to fit versus just taking a flier on a guy that, their tape looks good and you’ve heard he’s been good in this building, but for whatever reason, they’re not re-signing him.”
Darnold and Lawrence were named to the Pro Bowl. Kupp has not been productive but has added value in other ways, like the example he sets for the others in his position group.
“Guys look up to him, whether he knows it or not,” Darnold said of Kupp. “Guys are always looking at him, and, ‘What is he going to do?’ And he led by example. Him having a voice in the locker room and in his position room, that’s invaluable to have a guy like that.”
Kupp’s voice has meant the most to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the first Seahawk to lead the league in receiving yards since Steve Largent in 1985. Smith-Njigba spent most of the season on track to surpass Calvin Johnson’s single-season NFL receiving record of 1,964 yards. The last receiver to threaten Johnson’s record? Kupp in 2021. Kupp, 32, was uniquely equipped to be a guiding light for the 23-year-old Smith-Njigba.
“I don’t think I’m here without him just leading the group, pushing me, having the high-level talks that we have, and being able to just see in person how he operates and how he goes about his process,” Smith-Njigba said.
Seattle also wouldn’t be here without Darnold’s calmness and consistency. The defense wouldn’t be the league’s best without the example Lawrence sets for everyone else, with energy that Durde said is “contagious.”
“He’s had two forced fumbles where the ball is past him, he comes back and he makes the play,” Durde said. “When you do that, you see other guys celebrate with them. They appreciate that work. They appreciate that someone’s willing to do that for them to be successful. Those things allow people to believe that it is infectious.”
Similar to the way 2013 free-agent signees Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril were the icing on the cake that offseason, this year’s Big Three ended up being ideal pieces to complete the puzzle.
“This was, for sure, a good offseason for us,” said safety Julian Love, a free-agent signee in March 2023. “For one, the type of person, we’ve kind of figured it out now. Last year, we didn’t bat 1.000 because things have to align right. You can’t just go, ‘Oh, he’s talented. He could fit.’ Nah, not everybody works that way. Sam, D-Law, Coop — all of them are very selfless people.”
At the end of a training camp practice this summer, Nick Emmanwori was fired up about the team’s talent and potential. He told Love and Leonard Williams he wanted to play with them forever.
Love, a seven-year veteran, and Williams, in Year 11, let their rookie teammate know there’s urgency inside the locker room to win now and that they were counting on Emmanwori to be a significant contributor.
“They do got a point,” Emmanwori recalls thinking. “Time is to win right now. Fast forward — we in that position.”
Schneider’s legendary run of acquisitions from 2010 to 2012 was defined by the high-end talent without using first-round picks, save for Earl Thomas and Russell Okung.
This season has been a continuation of a path to landing top-tier talent: getting premium value out of premium draft picks. From 2022 to 2024, Schneider used first-round picks on left tackle Charles Cross, who just signed a $104 million extension; cornerback Devon Witherspoon, a three-time Pro Bowler; Smith-Njigba, who just finished one of the 10 best receiving seasons in NFL history; and defensive tackle Byron Murphy II, the leading Pro Bowl vote getter at his position and likely to garner All-Pro votes.
Schneider cashed in on a few more premium selections by using the 18th pick on left guard Grey Zabel, a consistently reliable presence on a much-improved offensive line, and the 35th pick — after trading up with the pick acquired in the Metcalf deal — on Emmanwori, a likely finalist for Defensive Rookie of the Year.
The value of a plug-and-play rookie guard at a time when free-agent interior linemen can command $17 million-per-year salaries speaks for itself. Beyond the talent, Zabel and Emmanwori have the mental makeup Seattle covets in cornerstone players.
“Not even just their playmaking ability but their energy,” Williams said. “Seeing young guys being able to show their energy, show their personality, show their enthusiastic personalities is huge. I’m seeing Grey during games coming up to me and hyping up the D-line, saying, ‘Hey, guys, give us a play; we got you guys.’
“Just having a young guy be able to (provide) motivation like that is big.”
Emmanwori is the skeleton key that unlocks Macdonald’s defense. Seattle can shut down potent run games and limit explosive passes with five defensive backs on the field because one of those DBs is a 6-foot-3, 220-pound athletic freak. It meant a lot to Emmanwori that his veterans had faith in him as a rookie, but at the same time, “That was my goal either way,” he said. And that attitude from the rookie is why he fits so well in this defense.
“That’s the No. 1 thing: They have Seahawk DNA in the way they approach football,” Berry said. “If you’re not all about ball, you’re probably not gonna fit here. You’re not gonna fit in that locker room and have the credibility with some of those guys if football’s not what you live and die for.”
On Saturday night, Love and Williams embraced after Seattle secured the division and the NFC’s top seed. It was a meaningful moment for the former New York Giants teammates. They made their playoff debuts together in 2022 with New York and then fell one game short in 2023 and 2024 with Seattle — thus, the urgency they expressed to Emmanwori.
Schneider witnessed the exchange between Love and Williams and shouted in their direction, “You’re welcome, guys.”
The rebranding of the practice squad to the “ready squad” speaks to the vision Schneider and Macdonald laid out for the organization. An NFL season is a war of attrition, and although the marquee free agents make the headlines, the more low-key transactions are equally meaningful in the Seahawks’ building.
This is where the collaboration between Schneider’s front office and Macdonald’s coaching staff has been the strongest. The Seahawks wouldn’t be here without the front office identifying and vouching for a backup such as linebacker Drake Thomas, claimed from the Raiders as a rookie in 2023. They’ve won games because of cornerback Josh Jobe, claimed from the Eagles in 2024. They clinched the No. 1 seed with 11 starts from safety Ty Okada, a rookie free-agent signee in 2023. Swing offensive tackle Josh Jones, a veteran free-agent signee in March on a $4 million deal, just started the three biggest games of the season.
Although most of those players were acquired before this season, their contributions this year are the product of a culture created by the two figureheads of the organization.
“When you have that cohesiveness,” Teasley said, “it bleeds into the players.”
Schneider operates with a “no finish line” mentality, meaning the roster is never solidified, even when the team is hot. This process led to arguably one of the more significant transactions of the year: trading fourth- and fifth-round picks for Rashid Shaheed. At the time, Seattle was 6-2, atop the NFC West and had a potent passing attack with Smith-Njigba, Kupp and rookie Tory Horton, who had a 48-yard, two-touchdown performance two days before the Shaheed deal.
But Shaheed went from luxury to necessity almost immediately. Horton suffered a shin injury in his breakout game and hasn’t played since. Seattle wouldn’t have home-field advantage in the playoffs without Shaheed’s playmaking, particularly on special teams (which was also Horton’s role). Shaheed was voted to the Pro Bowl and might earn All-Pro honors as well.
“Thankful for John and making the deal,” Macdonald said last month.
When Macdonald was hired in January 2024, he was behind the eight ball. He missed the Senior Bowl and skipped the NFL Scouting Combine to get up to speed as a first-time head coach. There was less time to spend with Schneider on their vision. Schneider’s offseason haul was one of his worst, and many guys were jettisoned during the summer or before the season ended.
This offseason, they had more time to connect, discuss the vision and streamline the process. They’ve reaped the benefits.
“(Schneider) and Mike set the vision, and then it’s on us to help execute that,” Berry said. “It’s a constant pursuit of alignment across football operations.”
On Monday, Macdonald was asked whether Schneider should be considered the Executive of the Year, an award voted by the Pro Football Writers of America that Seattle’s general manager has never won.
“The question is,” Macdonald said, “is it unanimous or not?”
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