Seahawks HC Mike Macdonald Explains Why He Fired OC Ryan Grubb

Seahawks HC Mike Macdonald explained why the team opted to fire OC Ryan Grubb after just one season with the team.

It was clear that there were some issues with the style of play from the Seahawks’ offense that were impacting the running game and even defense throughout the season. 

“It’s really as simple as just I felt like the direction our offense was going was different than the vision that I had for our team, and it felt like it was just a necessary decision at this point,” Macdonald said, via Brady Henderson of ESPN. “Ryan’s a heck of a football coach. We did some really great things on offense this year. Geno Smith I think had a bunch of career highs throwing the ball, and we did some really cool situation stuff. I know Jaxon Smith-Njigba had a great year. So, we did a lot of great things. It’s just my vision for our offense, I think … just ultimately was different than I thought Ryan thought it was going. So, we respect the heck out of him, wish him the best. These are tough decisions to make. These are really tough decisions to make, but the team comes first and just felt like it was best for the team.”

Macdonald has already begun a search for Grubb’s replacement, with one in-house option being passing game coordinator Jake Peetz, who is the most experienced member of the Seahawks’ offensive staff.

“We’re going to open it up,” Macdonald noted. “We’re going to do our research and be thorough with it. We want to be efficient. We want to move quickly, but we want to be smart as well. Just looking for right fit on the type of person that’s going to come in and lead our offense. Not that we weren’t aligned with Ryan, but definitely looking for alignment and a shared vision for how we want to operate.”

Seahawks QB Geno Smith still believes in Grubb and wishes him success in the future.

“I think Grubb is an excellent, excellent coordinator,” Smith said of Grubb. “Even better man. Our first year, obviously there was some ups and downs, there was some things we can improve on. We’ll work hard to get those things fixed, but I believe in this system. I believe this is a really good system and it’s going to be really good for a long time. I think Grubb has exactly what it takes to be a great coordinator in this league, and it’s his first year; you’ve got to give the guy some grace. He’s figuring things out too. I thought he did an outstanding job leading the group. I love the passion that he brings to the game, and he made me a better quarterback.”

Grubb, 48, began his coaching career at Kingsley-Pierson HS back in 2003. He worked for a number of colleges including South Dakota State, Sioux Falls, Eastern Michigan and Fresno State before Washington hired him as their assistant head coach/offensive coordinator in 2022.

Grubb held the coordinator job at Washington for two before departing for the job at Alabama. He ended up leaving that job after just a few days to become the Seahawks’ offensive coordinator. 

In 2024, the Seahawks’ offense ranked No. 14 in total yards, No. 18 in points scored, No. 28 in rushing yards and No. 8 in passing yards.

We will have more news on the Seahawks as it becomes available.