How Seahawks Defense Aims to Play Even Faster After Super Bowl Win

The Seattle Seahawks are coming off a year in which they were the best defense in the league. The "Dark Side" allowed the fewest points in the league en route to a Super Bowl title.

The scariest part about Seattle's defense is that there is still room for growth ahead of the 2026 campaign.

"We have been learning each other for the last two years," Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams said via team reporter John Boyle.

"Going on Mike's third year here, people should have more of a grasp of the way he calls defenses, what type of defenses he's calling in certain situations, allowing us to play ahead of the snap pretty much. The more we diagnose the defense and get used to all those moving pieces and changes, that's just going to allow us to play that much faster."

Seahawks Hope to Play Faster on Defense in 2026

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams during minicamp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Seahawks are expected to have 10 of their 11 starters back on defense for the upcoming season, which is a great sign for the unit's continuity.

It's the familiarity with one another and the trials and tribulations the team has faced together that will make the Seahawks even more threatening going into the season.

"When I can trust the guy next to me, know the guys next to me, we play on a different tempo, we sometimes can just look at each other and know how we're going to rush up front, how we're going to play blocks," Williams added.

"That continuity is just huge. We just talked about how guys come and go and stuff like that. I think we've done a good job here of keeping the majority of the same guys around each other. That allows for culture to grow, in my opinion."

Opposing offenses will be more prepared to face the Seahawks defense this season, but their ability to work in different schemes and disguise various coverages makes Seattle incredibly dangerous.

The Seahawks defense spent the first season under head coach Mike Macdonald just trying to get comfortable with him. Once they achieved a level of familiarity, it led to exponential growth in Year 2.

They don't have anywhere to go but down this season, but they will do everything they can to remain the league's best, and with their experience together, it's still very much in the cards.

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