Why Mike Macdonald Didn't Hire Internally For Seahawks' OC Job

Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald finally decided on a new offensive coordinator on Sunday, Feb. 15, hiring former 49ers tight end coach Brian Fleury to replace Klint Kubiak.

Before hiring Fleury, Macdonald had been considering four internal candidates as potential replacements: quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko, pass-game coordinator Jake Peetz, run-game specialist Justin Outten, and tight ends coach Mack Brown.

Macdonald introduced Fleury to the media on Thursday, explaining why he chose to hire Fleury over any other coach on his championship-winning staff.

"I think the mentality was … ‘Hey, let’s stick to our process.’ We had some really great, talented coaches in-house that we talked to, and all those guys did a phenomenal job," Macdonald said during the press conference. "Brian’s someone that I’ve known about for a while, and [there were] obviously some common relationships that we shared kind of throughout the coaching ranks.

August 23, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers run game coordinator/tight ends coach Brian Fleury before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Levi's Stadium. | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

"So, I knew about Brian, I knew he was a great coach, and then we had an opportunity to talk to him, and he just did a phenomenal job. I think his vision and what he believes in, offensively, with a football team was aligned with how we wanted, and he just hit the principles and philosophies on how he goes about his business and how he coaches and what he wants from our offense. He took it straight out of our culture graphic, so a lot of alignment that gave us an opportunity to have some great continuity, keep some great coaches as well and let us take our offense to the next level. We’re really excited about it. We’re off and running right now, trying to finalize our staff and excited to start our process."

Fleury is expected to employ a similar, run-first style of offense that Kubiak ran with the Seahawks. Kubiak comes from the Shanahan tree, the same as Fleury. That allows for the continuity that Macdonald is talking about, even if it isn't an identical scheme.

Macdonald also said he believes Fleury, having never called plays, is an "overrated" criticism, since every play-calling coach has to get their start somewhere. At the end of the day, it's still a risk that could end up great or horrible for the Seahawks' offensive success.

Janocko followed Kubiak to the Las Vegas Raiders and was hired as the team's OC. Outten, Peetz and Brown all remain with the Seahawks for now. As Macdonald eluded, they will be finalizing their coaching staff in the coming days or weeks.

In the meantime, the coaches who were passed over will have to wait at least one more coaching cycle to get a look as an offensive coordinator.

Why Mike Macdonald Didn't Hire Internally For Seahawks' OC Job

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