Is New Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald Too Young To Win Now?
It is in our DNA. We like "new'' and "young'' and "fresh.'' That bicycle that Santa Claus just put under your Christmas tree can be the exact same bike that sits in your garage unused, but ...
"Look how bright and shiny this one is!''
That registers as a legitimate concern as the Seattle Seahawks and general manager John Schneider have hitched the future of this franchise to Mike Macdonald, who has never before been a head coach and who at age 36 is the youngest guy in the NFL to hold that job.
A "leap of faith'' is how the new coach characterized his hire - a frank assessment. His success as the Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator is inarguable. But being young doesn't make him "better'' than the departed Pete Carroll, who is literally twice his age. And being young doesn't make him "better'' than Commanders-bound Dan Quinn, a familiar NFL leader with a Seattle history who moves from the Dallas Cowboys.
What we really know about Macdonald so far, in comparison to Pete and DQ?
He's bright and shiny.
ClutchPoints
“I don’t know how to describe it other than it was a feeling, it’s a connection, there’s clarity, and then everything everybody said about his great reputation came to life very quickly,” Schneider said of his initial interview with his new coach. “It was very evident.”
So evident that the Seahawks moved quickly, and two days after the had their meeting, they had their coach.
It is difficult to convince our own DNA-baked-in biases of this, but "young'' is neither good nor bad. "
Young'' can mean "energetic,'' but nobody ever accused the 72-year-old Carroll of lacking that.
Old can mean "tired'' ... but if you are undergoing brain surgery or even just trying to fix your toilet ... Do you want an experienced surgeon and an experienced plumber?
Schneider described his new coach as a “disruptor ... who is going to change the marketplace.''
That much is clear. Just being 36 instead of 72 is "disruptive'' enough to the Seattle culture. And the GM swears that the interview process cured concerns about inexperience.
“I talked to several people that interviewed him already and they’re like, ‘Wait 'til you look in this guy’s eyes. He’s there. He’s present. He’s on it,’” Schneider said. “He was and everybody in that room felt it.”
Macdonald wisely fell short of making grand promises in his first-ever press conference. But he did say of his roster, “It’s a young core.'' ...
Which makes it "new'' and "young'' and "fresh'' and "bright'' and "shiny'' - just like its new boss who just got unwrapped from under the Christmas tree.
