How the Seahawks were built: Analyzing key draft picks, signings

For the first time in 11 years, the Seattle Seahawks are back in the Super Bowl.

You may remember how their last appearance in the big game ended — and even if you don’t, it will be played enough this week that you’ll be seeing it in your sleep.

However, Malcolm Butler’s goal-line interception wasn’t just one of the most memorable plays in NFL history, but it was also a cautionary tale of why missed opportunities are so crushing in the NFL.

Despite a roster littered with All-Pros, led by Russell Wilson and the “Legion of Boom,” that Seahawks group never even made another NFC championship game.

But over a decade later, here they are again, with new offensive stars, a new head coach and another dominant defence.

So, how did a team that missed the playoffs the past two seasons end up playing for a Lombardi Trophy? Here’s a look at how the 2025 Seahawks were built:

While the New England Patriots spent $209 million in free agency this off-season to reshape their Super Bowl LX roster, the core of this Seahawks team was built primarily through the draft.

There’s just one glaring exception — their quarterback.

After a blockbuster trade sent QB Geno Smith to the Las Vegas Raiders this off-season, the Seahawks decided to hand the keys of their offence to Sam Darnold on a three-year, $105-million deal.

At the time, there was some warranted skepticism about Seattle’s decision. Despite coming off a 14-win season with the Minnesota Vikings, Darnold fell apart when the games mattered the most.

His tenure with the Vikings ended with a blowout loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round, where Darnold was sacked nine times and threw an interception.

But Seattle’s willingness to still bet on Darnold has proven to be one of the best moves of the entire off-season.

The 28-year-old pivot threw for 4,048 yards and 25 touchdowns this season, leading Seattle to a 14-3 record and the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

As for the narrative that he can’t show up when the lights get bright?

In Seattle’s two playoff games, Darnold has completed 70 per cent of his passes for 470 yards and four touchdowns. Most importantly, he hasn’t turned the ball over once.

In the NFC championship game, Darnold made big-time throw after big-time throw, and was the main reason why the Seahawks were able to pull out a shootout win over the Rams.

The biggest test of all still awaits, but win or lose on Sunday, the Darnold experiment can be seen as nothing other than a smashing success for Seattle.

Other notable free agents: WR Cooper Kupp (2025), DE Dexter Lawrence (2025)

Much like the “Legion of Boom” era, this Seahawks roster has been built primarily through the draft.

After a rough stretch in the mid-to-late 2010s, long-time Seattle GM John Schneider found his magic touch again in recent years.

Twenty-six of the 53 players on Seattle’s active roster for the NFC championship were selected by the team, including its biggest star.

Offensive player of the year favourite Jaxon Smith-Njigba tops the list, as the Seahawks drafted the Ohio State product with the No. 20 overall pick in 2023. In just his third season, the 23-year-old has blossomed into one of the most exciting offensive stars the league has to offer.

Smith-Njigba led the NFL with 1,793 yards on 119 receptions and instantly became Danrold’s go-to target.

Starting running back Kenneth Walker was a third-round selection in 2022, and four of Seattle’s five starting offensive linemen were also selected on draft day.

But the Seahawks made the Super Bowl this season largely on the backs of their dominant defence, and that’s where Schneider’s brilliance really shows.

Corner Devon Witherspoon was the team’s No. 5 pick in the 2023 draft, and has turned into one of the league’s top corners. In fact, the 25-year-old graded as the league’s No. 1 corner this season, per PFF.

Defensive tackle Byron Murphy, a key cog on an intimidating Seattle D-line, was the team’s first-round pick in 2024.

But Schneider might have saved his best for 2025, when he selected safety Nick Emmanwori early in the second round.

A finalist for this year’s defensive rookie of the year award, Emmanwori’s versatility has done wonders for Mike Macdonald’s defence.

As a big-bodied defensive back, his ability to both cover and step up and help with the run has allowed the Seahawks to play in their preferred nickel defence at a league-high rate. The strategy has proven very difficult for opposing offences to deal with.

All of this to say, if the Seahawks win their second Super Bowl in franchise history, the draft will be the main reason why once again.

Other notable draft picks: OT Charles Cross (Round 1, 2022), OT Abraham Lucas (3, 2022), OG Grey Zabel (1, 2025), S Coby Bryant (4, 2022), TE AJ Barner (4, 2024)

While the Smith trade was key because it opened the door for Darnold, it was actually the trade of Smith’s predecessor that gave the Seahawks the most bang for their buck.

The Denver Broncos paid a king’s ransom for Wilson, giving up five picks and a few players for the long-time Seattle star.

While the move set the Broncos back a few years, Witherspoon and Cross were two of the players that Seattle ended up with because of the trade.

It’s never easy to move on from a long-time face of the franchise, but the Seahawks moved Wilson at the perfect time.

The Seahawks did a similar thing this off-season when they traded star WR DK Metcalf to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Though the return wasn’t nearly the same as the Wilson deal, it opened the door for Smith-Njigba to take on the leading role like the Smith trade did for Darnold.

Other notable players acquired by trade: WR/KR Rashid Shaheed, DT Leonard Williams, LB Ernest Jones IV

He won’t gain a yard or record a tackle in the Super Bowl on Sunday, but the Seahawks’ most important personnel decision might have come on Jan. 31, 2024.

That was the day the team hired former Baltimore Ravens defensive co-ordinator Mike Macdonald to be its next head coach.

Taking over for the legendary Pete Carroll, Macdonald had big shoes to fill, but has passed with flying colours.

In just two seasons, Macdonald has helped transform a Seahawks defence that ranked near the bottom of the league to one of the top units in the NFL.

Along with Mike Vrabel, his counterpart in the Super Bowl, Macdonald is a deserving candidate to win this season’s coach of the year award.

And if his very first speech to the team is any indication, the Seahawks appear to have found their leader for years to come: