The Seahawks began 2024 with a big change, hiring Mike Macdonald as the team's head coach after 14 seasons under the leadership of Pete Carroll. And in many ways, Macdonald's first year was a success, with the Seahawks winning 10 games—the most by a first-year head coach in franchise history—while showing considerable growth on defense, Macdonald's specialty, as the season went along.

It's easy to see why Macdonald is excited about the foundation the Seahawks are building, saying, "We're just really optimistic, fired up for what's ahead of us with the direction our team is going." But at the same time, Macdonald is far from satisfied with how the season ended, with the Seahawks missing the playoffs by the narrowest of margins, losing the fifth tiebreaker, strength of victory, to the Rams, who also finished 10-7 to win the NFC West.

"Well, I wanted to win the Super Bowl," Macdonald said in his end-of-season press conference. "In order to do that, you've got to win games, you've got to make the dance, you want to win your division, you've got to win your conference, then you want to win the Super Bowl. We did a lot of the first goal, we won 10 of our games; we didn't achieve any of the other goals, so ultimately, we fell short. But there are other things that we felt like we did well where we're building in a position to go attack this thing moving forward."

While the team is moving forward, we here at Seahawks.com are taking a look back at the 2024 season so we can recognize the players, plays and moments that stood out in the Seahawks' first season under Macdonald with this year's Seahawks 2024 Honors.

Important disclaimer: These are very unofficial honors selected by a writer who might not really know what he's talking about, so please take all of this with a grain of salt.

Offensive MVP: QB Geno Smith

A lot was asked of Geno Smith in 2024, and more often than not, he delivered for the Seahawks, playing a huge role in the team getting to 10 wins and on the doorstep of a playoff berth.

Smith set single-season franchise records for completions (407), pass attempts (578), passing yards (4,320) and completion percentage (70.4), and he led four game-winning drives in the fourth quarter or overtime, giving him 12 in his three seasons as a starter, the second most in the league over that span.

And Smith did all that while having to carry the load for an offense that struggled to run the ball consistently—the Seahawks finished 28^th in both rushing yards and rushing attempts, and at one point in the season, they rushed for fewer than 100 yards seven times over a 10-game stretch—and while facing the fourth highest pressure rate (37.4 percent) in the league according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

"Geno is probably our top competitor on our football team," is how Macdonald described his quarterback after a tough loss to the Vikings in Week 16. "We're not sitting here with life at the end of December unless Geno has done the things that he's done."

About the only thing holding Smith's very good season back was the number of interceptions, 15, several of which were costly in losses. Anyone who watched Seattle's games rather than just look at a stat sheet could see that many, if not most, were only partially, if at all, Smith's fault. The always accountable Smith was quick to take the blame after losses, but between pressure that led to tipped balls or Smith getting hit while he threw, and a couple of rare mistakes by receivers who failed to secure catches, or who ran a wrong route, many of those interceptions were the fault of other players or play calls more than they were Smith's accuracy or decision making.

It wasn't a flawless season for Smith, but it was an awfully darn good one under, at times, some very challenging circumstances.

"We did a lot of really good things, and one of those things is Geno's productivity, and this is something that I'm looking forward to building off of," Macdonald said two days after Seattle's season came to an end with a win that featured another game-winning drive led by Smith. "I thought he had a really good year, we had a conversation yesterday, and the feeling you get was he's proud of the things we did, but felt like we could have done a better job as an offense and as a team and could have put ourselves in a position going to the tournament to go make a run at this thing."

Also deserving of a mention in this category are a pair of receivers, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and DK Metcalf. Smith-Njigba enjoyed a great second season, matching Tyler Lockett's single-season franchise record with 100 receptions for 1,130 yards and six touchdowns. Metcalf fell just short of another 1,000-yard season, finishing with 992 yards and five touchdowns on 66 catches, but those numbers don't fully illustrate how important he is to the offense because of how much he influences coverage, often creating more opportunities for his teammates. Metcalf did become the second receiver in league history, along with Randy Moss, to start his career with six straight seasons with at least 50 catches, 900 yards and five touchdowns.

Defensive MVP: DE Leonard Williams

Leonard Williams should have made the Pro Bowl (he still has a good shot to make it as an alternate) and he should have made the Associated Press All-Pro team, but while the people making those selections missed out on recognizing one of the NFL's most dominant interior linemen, that mistake won't be made here.

Williams, who the Seahawks acquired in a midseason trade in 2023, was a game-wrecking force in his first full season in Seattle. Williams led NFL interior linemen in sacks (11.0), tackle for loss (16) and quarterback hits (28) and he became the first Seahawks player to record a double-digit sack season since Jarran Reed and Frank Clark both did it in 2018. Williams also added a 92-yard pick-six to help spark a comeback win over the Jets, helping him earn NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors following that game, as well as NFC Defensive Player of the Month honors for December/January.

"All-Pro level, All-Pro talent, Pro-Bowl talent," outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu said of Williams late in the season. "That's what he's been, he's been able to do that. He was the No. 6 overall pick for a reason. He's always had it in him, he always could do it, and I'm happy he's doing what he's doing right now. He deserves all the recognition, because he's playing at a high level."

Also enjoying strong seasons on defense were, among others, cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who earned a second straight Pro-Bowl selection, safety Julian Love, midseason acquisition linebacker Ernest Jones IV, safety Coby Bryant and outside linebackers Derick Hall and Boye Mafe.

Special Teams MVP: P Michael Dickson & K Jason Myers

The Seahawks have enjoyed a long run of high-level play at punter and kicker, drafting Michael Dickson in 2018 and signing Jason Myers in 2019, and both of those players were at the top of their game in 2024.

Dickson, who earned Pro-Bowl and first-team All-Pro honors as a rookie, has been as good if not better in recent years than he was back then, but he has somehow been overlooked for those honors over the past six seasons, though he did earn first-team All-Pro honors from Pro Football Focus, which had him graded as their top punter. Dickson averaged 49.4 yards per punt, just off last year's career-high of 50.0, while posting a 43.3-yard net average that, again, was just off his career best mark of 44.4, and he also had 31 punts downed inside the 20.

Myers, meanwhile, continued a career-long trend of being one of the league's best kickers from long range. The franchise leader in field goals made from 50 or more yards, Myers made nine such kicks this year with only three misses, two of those coming from 60-plus yards. His nine makes from 50-plus are single-season career and franchise highs, and his 59-yard field goal in Atlanta was the longest made kick in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in that building's eight-year history.

"I think our specialists played dynamite this season," Macdonald said. "Jason Myers bailed us out of a lot of situations. I can't imagine anybody else in the world right now better than Michael Dickson, and it's a shame he didn't get the Pro Bowl."

Best Rookie, Offense: TE AJ Barner

Sataoa Laumea, who took over the starting job at right guard for the final six games of the season, showed promise and could have been the pick here, but tight end AJ Barner gets the nod for his body of work over the entire season.

A fourth-round pick out of Michigan, Barner wasn't known as a big pass-catching threat coming out of college—"Apparently coming out of the draft, I was just a blocking tight end," he said last month—but he proved to be a very good all-around tight end, as well as a solid contributor on special teams.

"Our type of guy, top-level worker, big-time competitor," Macdonald said of Barner, whose four touchdown receptions ranked third on the team behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba and DK Metcalf. "I think he can block and run pretty significant route tree as well and then he played for Jay [Harbaugh] on special teams in all four phases so we're going to expect him to come contribute in the kicking game as well as soon as he steps in the door."

Best Rookie, Defense: LB Tyrice Knight

Knight enjoyed the most productive season of any of Seattle's 2024 draft picks, making him the pick here, but it's also worth noting that, despite what was a pretty quiet season, statistically, the Seahawks remain very excited about what they saw out of first-round pick Byron Murphy II.

"Byron Murphy is going to be a great player in this league," Macdonald said. "He's already is a great player in this league. He's going to have a great career, he's in a great room so his role can skyrocket and it'll be what he makes of it and he'll create that. But this guy's a three-down player, he's done a great job

"I'm watching this guy do what he does at practice every day, every pass-rush rep. (Defensive coordinator Aden Durde), those guys are doing the same thing. He does the stuff at a high level, he plays really hard, he's a great technician for how young he is. Just tough as nails going out there and playing the last game not 100 percent and working through it. Production-wise, I know the sacks aren't there and the pass rush reps, but like every time this guy's taken a three-technique pass rush rep, that means Leonard Williams isn't on the field. And right now, I think Leonard is probably the best interior D-lineman in the game. So, it's like what do you want to do? We have to be more creative to get (Murphy) on the field, but he'll earn those opportunities and the production will be there in the long run. I'm convinced of that. This guy's a really good player."

As for Knight, the fourth-round pick out of UTEP, took over a starting job midway through the season, and along with trade acquisition Ernest Jones IV, helped the Seahawks find stability at inside linebacker. Despite starting only nine games, Knight finished fourth on the team in tackles with 88 and added three tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, a fumble recovery and two passes defensed.

Best Newcomer: LB Ernest Jones IV

The Seahawks added Jones in a midseason trade, and he immediately became a steadying presence for Seattle's defense, playing a big role in the second-half turnaround the Seahawks enjoyed on that side of the ball. In his 10 games for the Seahawks, Jones had 94 tackles, trailing only Julian Love and Devon Witherspoon, who each started all 17 games, and Jones also added a forced fumble, an interception and half a sack, and more important than those numbers was the on-field leadership role he took on, bonding with Macdonald as the player who received Macdonald's play calls and passed them on to the defense.

"I just think we see it the same way, we feel the game the same way," Jones said. "We feel what teams are trying to do to us—we're not all the way right, but we seem to be right most of the time. I just think the feel that we have for the game is the same, the way we talk about the game, the love of the game, it just all works out together, and we're able to communicate well. His communication from me to him goes out towards the whole defense."

Said Macdonald, "I love the guy. Anytime you're bringing someone to your team, you're looking forward to building a relationship with them. He doesn't mind me talking in his helmet a lot, so that's nice—can't control myself on that. I just love the person, love the competitor, tough as crap, loves ball. How do you not love guys like that?"

Most Improved Player: OLB Derick Hall

There are a few good choices for this one, including Coby Bryant, who started the year as a backup safety and special teams player, then took over a starting job and finished the year with 73 tackles, six passes defensed and three interceptions, which were tied for the most on the team, including a 69-yard pick-six in a win over the Cardinals.

A good case could also be made for Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who, as mentioned earlier, finished with 100 catches for 1,130 yards and six touchdowns. But Smith-Njigba's breakout felt more like it was the result of better health and of him getting more opportunities more than anything else. The 2023 first-round pick impressed last year as well when healthy, but he battled multiple injuries and just didn't get the volume of targets that he saw this year.

So as impressive as Smith-Njigba's second season was, the pick here is outside linebacker Derick Hall. Hall, a second-round pick in last year's draft, had a relatively quiet rookie season, starting zero games and playing only 26 percent of Seattle's defensive snaps while recording no sacks, three tackles for loss and five quarterback hits. A strong training camp helped Hall earn a bigger role this season, and he took advantage in a big way, starting 14 games, increasing his playing time to 60 percent of the defensive snaps on his way to 8.0 sacks, the second most on the team, 20 quarterback hits, six tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery that he returned 36 yards for a touchdown.

"Force Multiplier" Award: CB Devon Witherspoon

Did we make up this award just to talk about Devon Witherspoon? You're darn right we did. Because Witherspoon was just too good in 2024 not to get some sort of honor, but it's also really hard not to make Leonard Williams the Defensive MVP given everything he did this season.

Witherspoon, who made his second Pro Bowl in as many seasons, had another strong year, statistically, finishing with 98 tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, one forced fumble and nine passes defensed, but those numbers don't come close to illustrating his importance to the team and the defense.

Take, for example, Coby Bryant's pick-six against the Cardinals. Witherspoon wasn't credited with any sort of stat on that unless you count quarterback pressure, but he was largely responsible for making the play happen, making a great read to stop Kyler Murray for running for a first down, forcing an errant throw, then running down field to take out two players with a block to spring Bryant for the long return. Witherspoon even worked in a little taunting while he was at it.

"It just embodies Spoon, doesn't it?" defensive coordinator Aden Durde said of the play. "He goes one way, then he reacts to a play, uses his football IQ that is off the chain, then he talks crap to someone, then he realizes, then he runs off and then he goes and throws a block, then talks crap to someone. It's just him. He's a ball of energy and he's so smart, he's a leader of our defense, and I just respect the hell out of him."

More than anything, Witherspoon's 2024 season showed just how much he can impact the entire defense, both in terms of the way his play helps others do their job, and also how his energy and intensity rubs off on his teammates.

"This guy is the leader on our—it's his second year and he's grown so much as a leader and someone we're going to depend on for a long time here," Macdonald said. "We love him, and it's because of the energy and the competitiveness and the person and his love of the game and love for his teammates. It's infectious. How can you not play 1,000 percent when 21 is on the field doing the stuff that he does? We talk about force multiplier, he's a force multiplier."

Best Play, Offense: Geno Smith's game-winning touchdown run vs. the 49ers

There were plenty of big plays for Seattle's offense, ranging from long touchdown passes to DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, to big runs by Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet, to jaw-dropping throws made by Geno Smith. But the winner here is a run by Smith, his game-winning touchdown in the final seconds of Seattle's Week 11 win over the 49ers.

Smith's 13-yard scramble helped the Seahawks end a six-game losing streak against San Francisco, and it capped a masterful drive by Seattle's veteran quarterback. Leading an 80-yard drive in the final minutes of the game with the Seahawks trailing by four points, Smith completed 7 of 8 passes for 54 yards, then he scrambled 13 yards for the game-winning score, having already had a 16-yard run earlier in the drive.

Best Play, Defense: Leonard William's 92-yard pick-six against the Jets.

The Seahawks had multiple defensive touchdowns in 2024, so there are a lot of good choices, including Coby Bryant's pick-six against the Cardinals, and Derick Hall's fumble return score against Atlanta, which came after a Boye Mafe sack/forced fumble. But the top play goes to Williams, who showed off some considerable big-man speed returning an interception 92 yards for a touchdown to help the Seahawks come back against the Jets after falling behind thanks to a disastrous first half on special teams.

Williams, who also blocked an extra point and had two sacks in that game, dropped into coverage right into Aaron Rodgers' passing lane, picked off the pass, then took off sprinting down the left sideline, hitting 17.84 miles per hour on the return, making it the fastest play by a defensive tackle as a ball carrier since Week 4 of the 2019 season when Ndamukong Suh reached 18.04 mph on a fumble return touchdown, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

"Man, he was moving," safety Julian Love said after the game. "We threw some great blocks, but I don't think anyone would have caught him anyways. That's the Big Cat, man. He's playing at such a high level right now. That was a nuts play."

Best Trend: Road Success and Defensive Growth.

Among the many things the Seahawks did well last season, two that really jump out are their 7-1 road record, and the way the defense improved as the season progressed.

Seattle's seven road wins tied a franchise record, as did the six-game road winning streak to close out the season, and that road success is all the more impressive considering that the Seahawks traveled the third most miles of any NFL team this season, trailing only the Chargers and Dolphins who, as AFC teams, had one more road game than Seattle in 2024.

As for the defense, the Seahawks got off to a hot start under Macdonald, but suffered some growing pains as Seattle lost five of six heading into its bye week. Despite the Week 9 loss, however, the defense started to show considerable improvement in that game against the Rams, especially against the run, and carried that momentum into the bye, finishing the year by going 6-2 over the final eight games thanks in no small part to the growth of the defense.

Even with that rough stretch in the first half of the season, the Seahawks still finished the season ranked 11^th in points allowed, 14^th in yards allowed, and near the top of the league in yards (sixth) and points (fifth) allowed per drive.

And over their final eight games, the Seahawks ranked fourth in the league in yards allowed (304.8), fifth in points allowed (18.4), fifth in first downs allowed (18.1) and sixth in pass defense (205.0).

With the bulk of the starters expected back next year, and with Macdonald and the rest of the coaching staff having a full offseason to prepare for 2025, there is a lot to be excited about when it comes to Seattle's defense next season.

Biggest Reason For Optimism in 2025: Year 1 under Mike Macdonald was just "the beginning of something really special."

No, the season didn't go quite as well as the Seahawks would have hoped, and yes, there are areas where the Seahawks need to get better, but overall, the Seahawks head into the offseason feeling really good about the direction the team is headed in. Macdonald and his coaching staff were learning on the fly last season, and as much as they would have loved to avoid any growing pains, it was probably inevitable to some degree that those bumps in the road would occur. Things should run more smoothly this offseason and into the 2025 season, and given how well the defense performed the second half, the Seahawks have a shot to take a big step forward if they can find more consistency on offense under whoever Macdonald hires as offensive coordinator.

"We're just really optimistic, fired up for what's ahead of us with the direction our team is going," Macdonald said. "Obviously, we wanted to be fighting it out in the playoffs, and we felt like we had a good enough team to do some damage, but we didn't earn the right to do that. So we're moving on, but man, we're excited about what's to come, working through what the offseason is going to look like, making some tweaks, how do we evolve? All that stuff's ahead of us. How we build our roster, all those types of decisions, finding a new offensive coordinator, all those things. It's an exciting time, I'm excited about the foundation that we've been able to lay, and ready to get back to work."

Things to clean up in 2025: Struggling at home and turnover differential.

As good as a 7-1 road record was for Seattle, it wasn't enough to get to the playoffs because the Seahawks also went just 3-6 at home.

"The first thing that comes to mind is, we've got to play better at home," Macdonald said after being asked about the Seahawks' road record. "It's great to be 7-1 on the road, but we've got to make this place a nightmare for teams to come in and play us, and utilize our fans and the crowd and the 12s. The whole 12 as one mantra, we've really got to make that come to life when we're at Lumen, so that's going to be a major focus for us this offseason."

The Seahawks did play some of their tougher opponents at home, including playoff teams like Buffalo, Minnesota and Green Bay, but regardless of the opponent, the Seahawks know they need to have a much better record at home if they're going to get back to being among the NFC's elite.

And just one of the many factors in those home losses were turnovers, with the Seahawks committing 13 turnovers in their six losses at Lumen Field. Overall, the Seahawks were minus-six turnover differential, which ranked 23^rd in the league, their worst ranking in that crucial stat since 2010. The Seahawks finished the year 9-1 when even or positive in turnover differential, but were just 1-6 when losing the turnover battle.