On Thursday, John Schneider, Seahawks general manager/president of football operations stood in a hallway of the Virginia Mason Athletic Center and met with media. The scrum of media members, larger than the usual crowd, because Seattle will be playing in Super Bowl LX next week, stood around as Schneider answered questions about winning executive of the year, this season's free agency signings, and of course the upcoming game in Santa Clara. Here are five things we learned from his session with the media:
Mike Macdonald's preparation for the Super Bowl.
This trip down to California for the Super Bowl will be Schneider's third super bowl appearance as a general manager and he is no stranger to what it takes to prepare for the big stage. Head coach Mike Macdonald has leaned on all his resources to tap into all things Super Bowl prep.
"We have our private conversations," Schneider said. "He's done an amazing job already, talking to people that have been through it, the coaches, and he had an amazing meeting this morning. Expectations, this is what it's going to look like. He is very clear with his messaging. He doesn't stammer around like I am right now, know what I mean? He can go right at it. So he hit the players, like hey, this is what it's going to look like, this is the team, the week, all that stuff. He'll continue to do that the rest of the week. He knows.
John Schneider was hired by Seattle 16 years ago and won his first Executive of the Year award this year.
On January 22, Schneider was named the NFL's executive of the year by the Professional Football Writers of America, almost 16 years to the day of his hiring by the Seahawks. On January 19, 2010 Schneider was hired by Seattle as the team's general manager and now 16 years later is receiving recognition for playing a big part in the success the Seahawks are seeing this season.
Reflecting on his time in Seattle, Schneider said, "Super blessed to be able to raise our boys here, Ben and Jack, and everything Traci has done for the autism community. It's a total blessing... Is it that hard to just treat people the right way, work your ass off and do it the way you want to do it. We've been blessed to be allowed to do it the way we want to do it, and that's Paul Allen and Jody."
The award is the first of his career and it comes on the heels of free agency signings in Sam Darnold, DeMarcus Lawrence and Cooper Kupp who have all become key pieces to the roster, as well as a midseason trade for difference-maker Rashid Shaheed and then drafted rookies, Grey Zabel and Nick Emmanwori who have become starters. But for Schneider this award isn't just about him.
"In my opinion it's one of the coolest organizational awards," he said. "Erik Kennedy and Rob Porteus and James (Churchill) upstairs, the guys are constantly working on all this stuff to help us operate. To me, that's the coolest part about (it being) an organizational award. We're always going to have very tough decisions to make, good and bad, we're blessed to be doing that every single day. But the part about the people that help us make those decisions, I'm sure James Churchill puts together all this stuff for us in video and then is like, I hope these guys (look at it). He cares as much as we all do, and I'm sure he goes home at night like, man, I hope those guys don't screw it up. That's why I think it's like a really cool organizational award."
Reminiscing about the moments on the field after winning the NFC Championship game.
In the chaos that ensued after the clock hit zero following the NFC Championship win, head coach Mike Macdonald and Schneider found each other on the field and shared a hug, as well as a few exchanged words. That moment, that looked like an emotional one, was shared between two people who were on a mission to make their vision come to life.
"Just blessings," Schneider said of the moment. "A lot of prayer, a lot of hard work, a lot of tough conversations, tough decisions that he's embraced right away. It was amazing. Then the fans, to have the 12s and how the stadium was just lit up, place is going crazy, and like I talked about earlier, the vision of wanting to get back here, produce a consistent championship-caliber football team for amazing fans, the 12s, and how loud it was, I had told him, dude, when we get this rocking, you're going to be shook. And I think he was.
The timing of the Rashid Shaheed trade worked out perfectly.
When the Seahawks 2025 season is talked about retrospectively, the acquisition of receiver Rashid Shaheed through a midseason trade will be a pivotal moment of that retelling. Shaheed's trade happened at the trade deadline on November 4, and unbeknownst to Seattle at the time, Tory Horton who was a deep threat receiver and a punt returner, played his last game on November 2 and was placed on injured reserve on November 22.
"Serendipity, God's work," Schneider said. "We had been talking to the Saints, and when I say talking, like begging for a while. It wasn't like a big negotiation. They were kind of like, 'All right, this is what it's going to take.' We were like, 'All right, we're going to do it.' We had planned on having Tory and Rashid as top-end, take-the-top-off-guys speed threats, and literally that week, Tory was like, 'Man, I'm not feeling real good, something is going on.' Sam (Ramsden) and Strick (David Stricklin) and those guys, they seemed pretty worried so then we started doing more scans. But Tory is in a great spot. That guy is going to be an amazing player, and he's a great guy."
During training camp, he knew the team would be special.
Reflecting on the season up to this point, it was during the long weeks of training camp that Schneider started to understand how good the team would be.
"I think when we got into training camp, watching how Sam (Darnold) was interacting with his teammates and then how everybody was really buying into the walk-arounds and Mike's making it about the continuity and the connectedness."
Check out photos of the Seahawks 53-man active roster for the 2025 season.
This is a 2025 photo of DeMarcus Lawrence of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence (0)
This is a 2025 photo of Drew Lock of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks quarterback Drew Lock (2)
This is a 2025 photo of Nick Emmanwori of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks safety Nick Emmanwori (3)
This is a 2025 photo of Michael Dickson of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks punter Michael Dickson (4)
Seahawks kicker Jason Myers (5).
Seahawks kicker Jason Myers (5)
This is a 2025 photo of Jalen Milroe of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks quarterback Jalen Milroe (6)
This is a 2025 photo of Uchenna Nwosu of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (7)
This is a 2025 photo of Coby Bryant of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks safety Coby Bryant (8)
Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9)
Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9)
This is a 2025 photo of Cooper Kupp of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp (10)
This is a 2025 photo of Jaxon Smith-Njigba of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11)
This is a 2025 photo of Ernest Jones IV of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV (13)
This is a 2025 photo of Sam Darnold of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14)
This is a 2025 photo of Elijah Arroyo of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tight end Elijah Arroyo (18)
This is a 2025 photo of Jake Bobo of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks wide receiver Jake Bobo (19)
20 FS Julian Love is in his fifth season in the NFL and his first season with the Seahawks.
20- S Julian Love (2023-Present)
This is a 2025 photo of Devon Witherspoon of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21)
Seahawks wide receiver Rashid Shaheed (22)
This is a 2025 photo of Riq Woolen of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27)
This is a 2025 photo of Nehemiah Pritchett of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett (28)
This is a 2025 photo of Josh Jobe of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe (29)
This is a 2025 photo of George Holani of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks running back George Holani (36)
This is a 2025 photo of Brady Russell of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks fullback Brady Russell (38)
This is a 2025 photo of Ty Okada of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks safety Ty Okada (39)
This is a 2025 photo of Robbie Ouzts of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks fullback Robbie Ouzts (40)
This is a 2025 photo of Chris Stoll of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks long snapper Chris Stoll (41)
This is a 2025 photo of Drake Thomas of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas (42)
This is a 2025 photo of Tyrice Knight of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48)
This is a 2025 photo of Jared Ivey of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Jared Ivey (51)
This is a 2025 photo of Patrick O'Connell of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Patrick O'Connell (52)
This is a 2025 photo of Boye Mafe of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Boye Mafe (53)
This is a 2025 photo of Olu Oluwatimi of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks center Olu Oluwatimi (55)
This is a 2025 photo of Connor O'Toole of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Connor O'Toole (57)
This is a 2025 photo of Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall (58)
This is a 2025 photo of Jalen Sundell of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks center Jalen Sundell (61)
This is a 2025 photo of Christian Haynes of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks guard Christian Haynes (64)
This is a 2025 photo of Charles Cross of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tackle Charles Cross (67)
This is a 2025 photo of Abraham Lucas of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tackle Abraham Lucas (72)
This is a 2025 photo of Josh Jones of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tackle Josh Jones (74)
This is a 2025 photo of Anthony Bradford of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks guard Anthony Bradford (75)
This is a 2025 photo of Grey Zabel of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks guard Grey Zabel (76)
This is a 2025 photo of Mason Richman of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks offensive lineman Mason Richman (78)
This is a 2025 photo of Amari Kight of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tackle Amari Kight (79)
This is a 2025 photo of Eric Saubert of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tight end Eric Saubert (81)
This is a 2025 photo of Dareke Young of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks wide receiver Dareke Young (83)
This is a 2025 photo of AJ Barner of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks tight end AJ Barner (88)
This is a 2025 photo of Nick Kallerup of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Signed tight end Nick Kallerup (89) on May 2, 2025.
This is a 2024 photo of Jarran Reed of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seahawks active roster as of June 10, 2024 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks defensive tackle Jarran Reed (90)
This is a 2025 photo of Byron Murphy II of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (91)
This is a 2025 photo of Mike Morris of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks defensive end Mike Morris (94)
This is a 2025 photo of Brandon Pili of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks nose tackle Brandon Pili (95)
This is a 2025 photo of Rylie Mills of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seattle Seahawks active roster as of June 9, 2025 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks defensive tackle Rylie Mills (98)
This is a 2024 photo of Leonard Williams of the Seattle Seahawks NFL football team. This image reflects the Seahawks active roster as of June 10, 2024 when this image was taken. (AP Photo)
Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99)
