Jamal Adams, Talented Safety Group Helped Lure Sean Desai to Join Seahawks' Coaching Staff

Desai could have gone elsewhere after being passed over for multiple defensive coordinator jobs in January and February. But the chance to coach a loaded safety group, including the uber-talented Adams, led him to signing the dotted line to come to Seattle.

Understanding the time had come to make significant changes, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll swung for the fences as he tried to rebuild his defensive coaching staff following a difficult 7-10 season that culminated in a last place finish in the NFC West.

Sticking to past trends, Carroll elevated defensive line coach Clint Hurtt to defensive coordinator as a replacement for Ken Norton Jr., who had held the position for the past four seasons. Each of his past four defensive coordinator hirings had been internal candidates or coaches who had a prior track record working under him in Seattle, including Norton in 2018.

But while Carroll made the expected move promoting Hurtt, an old dog showed he can learn new tricks by expanding his reach outside of the organization to fill out the rest of the staff with young coaches boasting diverse backgrounds. Among those targeted, he coveted former Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai, who had previously worked with Hurtt for three seasons in Chicago and learned under renowned defensive guru Vic Fangio. 

Interviewed by the Giants, Raiders, and Vikings for defensive coordinator vacancies, Carroll wasn't sure if the Seahawks would have a chance to bring Desai on board. The rising 37-year old coach was one of the more sought after assistants available and it seemed inevitable he would eventually be hired for one of those openings.

However, despite drawing interest from numerous teams, Desai didn't land any of the jobs he interviewed for and was passed over in favor of other candidates. Suddenly, he faced the reality he wouldn't be coordinating any defenses in 2022, at least in terms of title. He would have to take a step back to continue building his candidacy for opportunities next offseason.

Though other teams such as Minnesota tried to hire Desai as an assistant, with defensive coordinator gigs drying up, Carroll and Hurtt put on a full court press aiming to secure his services. Executing hook, line, and sinker to perfection, they lured him in by offering an associate head coach role with plenty of perks he couldn't turn down, giving Seattle what Carroll described as an exciting "one-two punch" working in tandem calling the defense.

"They've been together, and Clint was a big part of that hiring, and also a big part of attracting Sean to us," Carroll told reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine. "He was very, very much sought after by a number of clubs. He had all kinds of interviews, he was all over the place, and we were fortunate to get him. We put him in a position where he has a good deal of influence scheme-wise, tactically, and in all ways. And so, I really like that combination."

As Carroll noted, Hurtt and Desai coached together under esteemed defensive guru Vic Fangio with the Bears from 2014 to 2016. During that time, Hurtt coached as an assistant defensive line coach and outside linebackers coach, while Desai held a defensive quality control coaching position and primarily worked with defensive backs.

After Hurtt bolted for the Pacific Northwest to take over as Seattle's defensive line coach in 2017, Desai helped coach one of the best secondaries in the NFL in 2018. Under his tutelage, safety Eddie Jackson and cornerback Kyle Fuller earned First-Team All-Pro honors for one of the league's stingiest defenses, earning himself a promotion to safeties coach in 2019.

In his first season holding his new position, the Bears ranked fourth in the NFL in points allowed in large part due to stellar play from their safeties. Jackson earned his second straight Pro Bowl selection with 60 tackles and a pair of interceptions, while Ha Ha Clinton-Dix registered 78 tackles and two picks. The following year, while the defense regressed to 14th in scoring, Jackson and Tashaun Gipson each had solid seasons with 82 and 66 tackles respectively, the former forcing three fumbles, and the latter picking off two passes.

Rewarding him for his efforts coaching in the secondary for nearly a decade under three different head coaches, Matt Nagy elevated Desai to defensive coordinator last season to replace the retiring Chuck Pagano. Though the Bears finished 22nd in scoring defense in part due to a poor offense failing to support the defense, his unit ranked sixth in total yardage allowed, third in passing yardage allowed, first in pressure percentage, and fourth in sacks.

In efforts to revamp the staff, Carroll coveted young, ascending coaches with diverse backgrounds and Desai stood out as a top desired target from the get go. Along with being assured he would carry a key role in defensive game-planning among other things, the allure of coaching Jamal Adams, Quandre Diggs, and the rest of the Seahawks talented safety group helped persuade him to jump onboard as an associate head coach.

"It was one of the aspects of it. Yeah. And of course, he's really excited about our guys," Carroll said. "He sees what we have and he knows these guys really could be a big part of the package. And so that was part of what he was attracted to. The challenge of coaching Jamal and Q [Quandre Diggs], he's seen Ryan Neal and what he does, and he also knew about Marquise [Blair]. I don't how he kept track of it, but he realized that was a gap that he had pinpointed possibly could be a factor too, and we haven't really captured Marquise yet in his productivity. It'll show if we get to keep him healthy."

After performing well under difficult circumstances last season with the Bears, there's no question Desai views this position as a launching pad to his next defensive coordinator gig or even a head coaching opportunity. One way he could quickly stand out to teams entering the hiring cycle next January would be bringing out the best in a unicorn like Adams whose unique skill set has yet to be fully maximized in two seasons with the Seahawks.

In his first season in Seattle, Adams only played in 12 games due to a groin injury, but he turned in the most dominant pass rushing season by a safety in NFL history. He broke Adrian Wilson's record for the most sacks by a defensive back (9.5), averaging nearly a sack per game and posting a remarkable 32 percent pressure rate on 106 pass rushing opportunities. However, he struggled in coverage, allowing quarterbacks to post a 118.6 passer rating and 80 percent completion rate against him with no interceptions.

Last year, with Carroll indicating on multiple occasions that teams were game-planning for his blitzes, Adams wasn't sent after the quarterback near as frequently. After rushing on 13.2 percent of his snaps in 2020, he was only sent 5.8 percent of the time last season and wasn't near as effective with those opportunities, posting a 13.7 percent pressure rate. As a result, he failed to record a single sack and only registered two quarterback hits.

"He is an aggressive part of our scheme and a very attack oriented guy. We did find that teams really did plan against him," Carroll explained. "Guy has more sacks than anybody in history of football. You're going to get a little attention. Well, that's what happened, 'So is he lined up, oh, he's right, 33's right there.' You know? But we can't let that stop us either, but it was an obvious fact that we realized from last year, so we hope to do that better."

However, after a challenging start, Adams found his groove in coverage as the Seahawks transitioned to running more two-deep, middle of field open looks, including running Cover 6 12.3 percent of the time, the eighth-highest rate in the NFL per TruMedia. He recorded a pair of interceptions against the Packers and Washington Football Team in a three-game span and when his season ended early due to a shoulder injury in Week 13, he finished allowing a respectable 69.9 passer rating and 57.8 percent completion rate when targeted.

As Seattle transitions into a new season, while working in conjunction with Hurtt, the onus will largely fall on Desai to unlock Adams' maximum potential from a schematic standpoint. The three-time All-Pro has proven to be a weapon rushing the passer throughout his career and flashed coverage ability last season when put in position to be successful.

With a ball-hawking safety like Diggs roaming center field who can handle single-high duties in a pinch, the team should have plenty of flexibility moving Adams around the formation to wreak havoc. He should be able to rush off the edge, blitz through the interior, and partake in Seattle's stunt game up front at times. In coverage, he should be utilized more in man coverage against tight ends while playing his fair share of two-deep looks and seeing some hook responsibilities in zone functioning like a linebacker.

Moving towards 2022, it will be critical to blend Adams' strengths playing near the line of scrimmage with deploying him where he's most comfortable in coverage. The Seahawks can't afford to not utilize him as part of their pass rushing arsenal, but they have to be more creative using him in that capacity to allow him to be more efficient with those opportunities. It's a balance Carroll thinks will be easier to accomplish with the player not sitting out waiting for a new contract as he did last summer.

"It is about pressuring, effectively, and it's not necessarily how many times you're pressured but doing it right. And I don't like the fact that we didn't get to implement all of the stuff we wanted to do with Jamal it's because we missed the offseason," Carroll said, "As we started the season, we just didn't feel like if there was enough time to capture the information we needed, how much he could do, how much he could handle, where could we find the practice time? It just got down to game week, you know? And so this time around will be different."

For the Seahawks to remain competitive in the NFC West next season, without Russell Wilson running the show offensively, the defense will have to be much improved compared to a year ago after finishing 28th in yardage, 31st in passing yardage, 29th in pressure rate, and 22nd in sacks. Unleashing a fully healthy Adams in an aggressive defense schemed to take advantage of his rare set of skills could go a long ways toward making that a reality and Desai holds the key.