'Play With a Purpose': Seattle Seahawks Gearing Up For Preseason Opener

The Seahawks have spent the past three months preparing to play football. The first game has finally arrived.

Jul 27, 2024; Renton, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks guard Christian Haynes (64) during training camp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. / Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

After months of preparation, the Seattle Seahawks will finally play a football game on Saturday, Aug. 10. It’s preseason, but it will also be Mike Macdonald’s head coaching debut.

The Seahawks will kick off against the Los Angeles Chargers at 4:05 PDT at SoFi Stadium. Winning or losing won’t count for or against the team’s record, but that doesn’t change the goal for Macdonald and his football team.

“We’d like to win the game. You play with a purpose,” Macdonald said after Thursday’s practice at the VMAC. “But like we told the guys today, we want to give the guys the best opportunity to show their best football. It’s [an] awesome opportunity to evaluate where we’re at as a football team.”

Macdonald has already stated that starting quarterback Geno Smith won’t play, which is sort of a sigh of relief given his stint of four missed practices due to injury in the middle of the first phase of camp. Most of the offensive starters won’t be on the field, Macdonald said, but a “good amount” of the defensive starters will play — albeit for a short period, most likely.

The preseason is always a difficult balance with wanting to get game reps — and allowing your players to thump another team for a change — while also trying to prevent injury before those snaps truly count against the season. Macdonald wants to see his players in the new offensive and defensive schemes, but he also wants to protect them. More of the starters will likely play by Week 3 of the preseason as they ramp up to Week 1 against the Denver Broncos.

Then, of course, there’s the need to evaluate players on the roster bubble. Preseason is massive for seeing those players in game situations as the coaching staff tries to cement the final roster. Particularly on defense, Macdonald will be focused on tackling at live tempo.

“It’s huge,” Macdonald said of live tackling reps. “It goes back to how well you can orchestrate practice and execute making sure you’re taking the right angles, things like that … getting some live reps of the [third team] at the stadium is another opportunity to kind of hone the tackling. Absolutely, how we tackle will definitely be at the top of the list of things we’re evaluating.”

Offensively, the focus will be on quarterbacks Sam Howell and PJ Walker. The pair will split game reps as the only two quarterbacks on Seattle’s roster behind Smith. Howell entered camp as the prospective immediate backup, but Walker has been closing that gap through three weeks of practice.

“I want to see them operate our offense — do the things that they do that we love about them,” Macdonald said. “Go out and go sling it, and make some great decisions, and let’s rock and roll.”

Jul 27, 2024; Renton, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) during training camp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. / Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

Other position groups to watch on offense include running back, tight end and the entire offensive line — namely rookie draft picks Christian Haynes, Sataoa Laumea and Michael Jerrell. The competition for the third running back spot between George Holani and Kenny McIntosh is heating up, and the stable of tight ends behind Noah Fant and Pharaoh Brown is steeped in a battle for depth roles.

Defensively, rookie first-round pick Byron Murphy II will make his debut, Macdonald said. Starting WILL linebacker Jerome Baker is working back from injury, so there should be plenty of reps for rookie fourth-round pick Tyrice Knight. At the other middle linebacker spot, Tyrel Dodson should at least make a brief debut for the Seahawks.

There's also the new kickoff, which makes for an especially exciting first preseason game. The new format is one of the biggest shake-ups to a staple NFL play the league has ever seen. The competition for Seattle's lead returner job is nuanced in itself, with wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. seemingly leading the group into the opener.

The next month will be incredibly formative for what Seattle's football team will look like come Week 1. That all starts in Los Angeles on Saturday, as players begin the real battle for a spot on the 53-man roster.