Ernest Jones IV has been a sound, reliable and integral piece to Mike Macdonald's defense since the Seahawks traded for the then 24-year-old linebacker who was just six games into his tenure with the Tennessee Titans. Over the span of two months in 2024, Jones was traded by the Los Angeles Rams and then traded by the Titans to Seattle. The Seahawks have been on the winning end of all those transactions ever since.

Since that October 23, 2024, trade, Jones has helped Seattle's defense go from, statistically ranking near the bottom of NFL defenses, to one of the best defenses to close out that 2024 season. And seven games into the 2025 season, and a year into his tenure with Seattle, the Seahawks defense, guided by Jones, have no plans of slowing up.

Jones is the middle linebacker. The green dot. The "quarterback of the defense." And if you ask him, "I always think I'm Mike's (Macdonald) favorite honestly (laughing)."

He added, "I have to be. [Macdonald and I] talk often trying to see, because I'll get in situations where it's loud in Lumen Field and I can't hear Mike. So I have to get in situations where I have to make calls, so we're always constantly communicating on that aspect of it. During the game, we got a TV timeout, go check in with him, see what he's thinking. I think our relationship is unique."

While he's the one either making the calls or relaying them to the defense, his level of comfortability and his guidance of the defense has blossomed.

"He's so comfortable now with just taking control," Leonard Williams said. "He sees the offense coming out with a quick tempo. Instead of waiting for the call, sometimes he'll just get us quick, get us set. Once our cleats are in the ground, it's like he trusts our team. I think that's where EJ is doing a good job of just taking control of the defense."

The way he leads doesn't just show up on gameday when he's making or relaying calls, but also through the week of practice or walkthroughs.

"I think it's just like a steadiness to him and there's a passion," Macdonald said. "How we play on defense is important to him, and the guys feel that. Where there's a sense of urgency about what we do, and just like we said from day one, 'A walkthrough rep out here on Wednesday is incredibly important to him. A walkthrough rep on Saturdays is really important to him.' And if we have that mentality defensively, every time we take the field, you get a chance to uphold the standard all the time. That's the attitude that he brings every day."

The way he's playing, the way he commands the defense and how he carries himself has garnered the respect from everyone around him.

"He's playing some very high-level football at the moment, defensive coordinator Aden Durde said. "He's controlling and running our defense, and that's what we need."

But why has he been so successful in Seattle's defense?

Jones said, "D-line, bunch of killers up front and then Coach Mike does a good job, of putting me in position to make plays. I credit it all to Mike and my D-line, man. They make it easy on me and I just go out there and have to go make the plays."

Macdonald is of the mindset of, "calling plays for players… you're trying to put people in position rather than get them out of the way," and that philosophy has allowed players on this defense, including Jones, showcase what they do best.

"That's been the biggest thing for me. I think my first three years in the league, four years in the league, people always wanted to classify me as just the run stopper, but I'm a ball player. You put that ball anywhere, I'm going to get it. Coverage, run the ball. It's just what I do. I play football."

How important Jones is to Seattle's defense is put on display each week.

"I don't think I can say anything that you that you guys haven't seen," Macdonald said. "You need someone in the middle of your defense to be an anchor, patrol the middle of the paint, make plays in the run and the pass game, and he's doing that. Then you add his mentality, his toughness, and leadership, it's made a difference for us."

And on the anniversary of his trade to the Seahawks, his impact to Seattle's defense in just a year can't be understated.