The hidden strength of the Seahawks coaching staff

The hidden strength of the Seahawks coaching staff

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

The hidden strength of the Seahawks coaching staff

Last week I was mulling over the Seattle Seahawks offense. While the majority of players and coaches stayed, there were some changes that happened: new offensive coordinator, new running back coach, new pass game specialist. Some coaches that stayed got promotions even. While looking through their bios and coaching history, it struck me that this offensive coaching staff had a wise range of experience. So, as one does, I made a tweet about it jotting down my thoughts, and went back to running errands.

Now, I didn’t think much of it. Brock Huard, however, thought it was an interesting point. He quoted it, and brought it up on his show the next day with Mike Salk.

As Brock point out, during his experience as a player, he never had a coaching staff that had the diversity in background experience as the current coaching staff, which I found fascinating. It seems as though Mike Macdonald wants his coaches to be as versatile as his players, and that is what we will be talking about today. I will be highlighting a few different coaches on the offense, and showcase their backgrounds and how that could impact the Seahawks offense in 2026. Let’s dive on in!

Brian Fleury, Offensive Coordinator

Let’s start off with the man himself, the new offensive coordinator, Brian Fleury! He was a college quarterback himself from 1998 through 2002 playing for both Maryland and Towson. Soon after he went on to coach the secondary, outside linebackers, and eventually become the defensive coordinator for Sacred Heart University (2005 through 2008). Fleury went back to Towson and was their special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach from 2009 to 2012.

His NFL experience had variety to it, as well. Quality control coach for the Bills in 2013, linebackers coach for the Browns (2014-2015), football research analyst and director of football research for the Dolphins (2016-2018). Then in 2019, he started his seven years with Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco, holding many hats: defensive quality control coach (2019), offensive quality control coach (2020-2021), tight ends coach (2022-2025), and run game coordinator to add to his tight end coach duties (2025). It is worth noting that during his time with the 49ers, Fleury and Sam Darnold did cross paths, and he directly coached Seahawks tight end Eric Saubert.

With that vast experience coaching offense, defense, special teams, doing research into analytics of the game, and having been a quarterback himself, Fleury has a very holistic view of the game of football. He understands the defensive front seven, the secondary, the run game, and the pass game. Now, he will be calling plays for the Seahawks. And while he has never called plays in the NFL himself, he helped design plays for the 49ers, and would help Shanahan make in game decisions. Also, as previously mentioned, he has experience as a defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator.

Thomas Hammock, Running Backs coach

New Seahawks running back coach Thomas Hammock has a good amount of college and NFL experience. He was a college running back at Northern Illinois from 1999 to 2002. He would go on to coach running backs there from 2005 to 2006, before coaching running backs at Minnesota starting in 2007, then promoted to co-offensive coordinator in 2010. From 2011 to 2013, Hammock was the assistant head coach for Wisconsin.

Hammock made the leap to the NFL and became the Baltimore Ravens running back coach in 2014, working with former Seahawks Justin Forsett and Alex Collins, and coach along side Mike Macdonald and Leslie Frazier. He would leave the Ravens in 2019 to become the head coach of Northern Illinois, and he eventually coached against new Seahawks running back Jadarian Price and gave Notre Dame one of their two losses in their 2024 season. Now, in 2026, he will be coaching the running backs for the Seahawks and be a senior offensive assistant alongside John Benton, reuniting with Macdonald and Frazier.

Hammock brings a deep understanding of the running back position, and the offense as a whole, having been a head coach and offensive coordinator. He is a true leader of men, and knows what running backs need to do to succeed in the NFL. With both the head coach and offensive coordinator experience, he understands the flow of the offense, and can be someone Fleury can lean on if needed.

Daniel Stern, Pass Game Strategist

One of the more intriguing names on the coaching staff is Daniel Stern. I remember initially hearing about him in 2019 on Good Morning Football when Peter Schrager brought him up in a segment as a young up and coming mastermind. It intrigued me, and was curious where he would go in the NFL.

Starting in 2013, Stern was a student assistant to the coaching staff at Yale before making the jump to the NFL in 2016 joining the Ravens staff that included Hammock, Macdonald and Frazier. He started off as a coaching analytics assistant, before moving to football analyst in 2018 then football research coach in 2020. Stern then got some experience on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, becoming an offensive quality control coach in 2021, then a defensive quality control coach on 2023. Stern moved back to the offensive side of the ball, becoming an assistant quarterbacks coach and the director of football strategy in 2024 before being hired on with the Seahawks in 2026 as their pass game strategist.

Stern, like Fleury, has experience coaching offense, defense, and studying analytics. He helped the Ravens understand in-game when it would be best to go for it on 4th down or punt. He understands both the human aspect and the analytical aspect of the game, and has spent nearly a decade learning how both work together. He will be a key part of this offense and someone Fleury can use to know what to do in different situations.

John Benton, Offensive Line coach

The man. The myth. The legend. The coach who helped turn a Seahawks offensive line that was ranked in the 30’s to one that was ranked 17th by FTN who believe it can be ranked in the top 15 by the end of 2026. John Benton has coached under Gary Kubiak, Kyle Shanahan, Gus Bradley, and Robert Saleh to name a few. Last year, he helped Rick Dennison and Klint Kubiak turn the Seahawks offense into one of top units in the league.

In college, Benton was an offensive lineman back at Colorado State University from 1983 through 1986. He started coaching in 1990 at California University (PA) as an offensive line coach, a position he would continue to coach for 17 years at the collegiate level including at Colorado State where he would also add on the title of co-offensive coordinator in 2000.

Benton made the jump into the NFL in 2004, when he became the offensive line coach with the Rams, as well as the Texans under Gary Kubiak (2006-2013), the Dolphins (2014-2015), the Jaguars (2016), and 49ers under Shanahan (2017-2020). With the Jets in 2021, he would also add on the title of run game coordinator to go along with being the offensive line coach. In 2024, he joined the Saints along with Klint Kubiak and Rick Dennison before all three joined the Seahawks in 2025.

To say Benton knows offenses would be an understatement. As a former lineman, as well as coaching offensive line since 1990, he has 36 years coaching the position, along with experience being an offensive coordinator and a run game coordinator. He knows the wide zone scheme, and pounded the table for players like Grey Zabel, Bryce Cabeldue, Mason Richman, and Beau Stephens. He also has helped Anthony Bradford cut down on his penalties and continually improve his play. He will be an integral part of helping Fleury this upcoming season.

Jake Peetz, Quarterbacks coach/Pass Game Coordinator

A familiar name for many Seahawks fans, and one many thought could be the next offensive coordinator. In high school he played tight end, cornerback, defensive end, and long snapper. In college at Nebraska from 2003 to 2005, he played defensive back and long snapper. Once he graduated, he started his coaching career at Santa Barbara City College as the special teams coordinator, safeties coach, and strength and conditioning coordinator. In 2007, he was a defensive assistant at UCLA. In 2008, he would get his first NFL job as a scout for the Jaguars before moving to coaching for the organization as the assistant quarterbacks coach in 2012.

Peetz would go back to the college ranks in 2013, becoming an offensive analyst at Alabama before going back to the NFL in 2014, landing the offensive quality control coach job with Washington where he would first work with Sean McVay who was the offensive coordinator. He started his three year stint with the Raiders in 2015 as a senior offensive assistant and later quarterbacks coach. Peetz in 2018 would get his old position back at Alabama as an offensive analyst.

Peetz joined the Panthers organization in 2019 for two years coaching both running backs and quarterbacks. Then in 2021 he was hired by LSU as its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Peetz linked back up with McVay in 2022 as an offensive assistant before promoting to pass game specialist in 2023. Then in 2024 he joined the Seahawks as the pass game coordinator before adding the familiar title of quarterbacks coach in 2026 to his duties as pass game coordinator.

Peetz is a lot like Fleury, having coached offense, defense, and special teams. He is also unique in that he also played offense, defense, and special teams. He knows all three phases of the sport, and has play calling experience. Peetz will indeed be someone the Fleury can pick the brain of in the middle of a game like Shanahan would do with him.

Justin Outten, Run Game Coordinator

Justin Outten’s football experience is a fascinating one. He was a college center at Syracuse from 2003 to 2006 and was a grad assistant there in 2007. He became a high school coach in 2008 at Westfield High School in Texas for the next eight years, where he put on the hats of offensive line coach, offensive coordinator, and assistant head coach. Outten began his NFL coaching journey in 2016, joining the Dan Quin- led Falcons, with whom he’d spend the next three years, starting off as a coaching intern, then in 2017 moving up to offensive assistant under Steve Sarkisian.

In 2019, Outten went to Green Bay and became their tight ends coach for the next three years. After Green Bay, he joined the Broncos organization in 2022 as their offensive coordinator, coaching along side Klint Kubiak. In 2023, the Titans asked Outten to join their staff for the next two years, initially as their running backs coach and run game coordinator, then the following year as their tight ends coach. Mike Macdonald came calling in 2025, asking Outten to join the Seahawks coaching staff as their run game specialist and assistant offensive line coach working beside Benton. He also picked up coaching the running backs when Kennedy Polamalu took a leave of absence in December. Outten then got a promotion and will be the run game coordinator in 2026.

Outten has coached beside some of the best offensive minds in the NFL: Kyle Shanahan, Mike McDaniel, Klint Kubiak, Mike and Matt LaFleur. Having been a college center and grad assistant, high school coach, and NFL coach, he has experience coaching in all three levels. Outten also has experience coaching multiple positions and offensive coordinator. That wealth of experience with be something Fleury will tap into, especially with having familiarity with the Shanahan style of offense.

Putting it all together

These six coaches will all play a big part in the offense this upcoming season. The diverse experience they bring to the table to prove to be invaluable, and could lift this offense even higher than it was last season. Fleury has several coaches on this offensive staff with play calling experience that he can tap into, many who understand both the offense and defense, and Stern with the analytics background much like himself. It is also interesting to see how many similar connections these coaches have with one another, which should also help build a common understand and foundation that they can build upon. It is an exciting future ahead for this Seahawks offense. As Macdonald would say, it is time to run it forward!

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos

The hidden strength of the Seahawks coaching staff

The hidden strength of the Seahawks coaching staff

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

The hidden strength of the Seahawks coaching staff

Last week I was mulling over the Seattle Seahawks offense. While the majority of players and coaches stayed, there were some changes that happened: new offensive coordinator, new running back coach, new pass game specialist. Some coaches that stayed got promotions even. While looking through their bios and coaching history, it struck me that this offensive coaching staff had a wise range of experience. So, as one does, I made a tweet about it jotting down my thoughts, and went back to running errands.

Now, I didn’t think much of it. Brock Huard, however, thought it was an interesting point. He quoted it, and brought it up on his show the next day with Mike Salk.

As Brock point out, during his experience as a player, he never had a coaching staff that had the diversity in background experience as the current coaching staff, which I found fascinating. It seems as though Mike Macdonald wants his coaches to be as versatile as his players, and that is what we will be talking about today. I will be highlighting a few different coaches on the offense, and showcase their backgrounds and how that could impact the Seahawks offense in 2026. Let’s dive on in!

Brian Fleury, Offensive Coordinator

Let’s start off with the man himself, the new offensive coordinator, Brian Fleury! He was a college quarterback himself from 1998 through 2002 playing for both Maryland and Towson. Soon after he went on to coach the secondary, outside linebackers, and eventually become the defensive coordinator for Sacred Heart University (2005 through 2008). Fleury went back to Towson and was their special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach from 2009 to 2012.

His NFL experience had variety to it, as well. Quality control coach for the Bills in 2013, linebackers coach for the Browns (2014-2015), football research analyst and director of football research for the Dolphins (2016-2018). Then in 2019, he started his seven years with Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco, holding many hats: defensive quality control coach (2019), offensive quality control coach (2020-2021), tight ends coach (2022-2025), and run game coordinator to add to his tight end coach duties (2025). It is worth noting that during his time with the 49ers, Fleury and Sam Darnold did cross paths, and he directly coached Seahawks tight end Eric Saubert.

With that vast experience coaching offense, defense, special teams, doing research into analytics of the game, and having been a quarterback himself, Fleury has a very holistic view of the game of football. He understands the defensive front seven, the secondary, the run game, and the pass game. Now, he will be calling plays for the Seahawks. And while he has never called plays in the NFL himself, he helped design plays for the 49ers, and would help Shanahan make in game decisions. Also, as previously mentioned, he has experience as a defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator.

Thomas Hammock, Running Backs coach

New Seahawks running back coach Thomas Hammock has a good amount of college and NFL experience. He was a college running back at Northern Illinois from 1999 to 2002. He would go on to coach running backs there from 2005 to 2006, before coaching running backs at Minnesota starting in 2007, then promoted to co-offensive coordinator in 2010. From 2011 to 2013, Hammock was the assistant head coach for Wisconsin.

Hammock made the leap to the NFL and became the Baltimore Ravens running back coach in 2014, working with former Seahawks Justin Forsett and Alex Collins, and coach along side Mike Macdonald and Leslie Frazier. He would leave the Ravens in 2019 to become the head coach of Northern Illinois, and he eventually coached against new Seahawks running back Jadarian Price and gave Notre Dame one of their two losses in their 2024 season. Now, in 2026, he will be coaching the running backs for the Seahawks and be a senior offensive assistant alongside John Benton, reuniting with Macdonald and Frazier.

Hammock brings a deep understanding of the running back position, and the offense as a whole, having been a head coach and offensive coordinator. He is a true leader of men, and knows what running backs need to do to succeed in the NFL. With both the head coach and offensive coordinator experience, he understands the flow of the offense, and can be someone Fleury can lean on if needed.

Daniel Stern, Pass Game Strategist

One of the more intriguing names on the coaching staff is Daniel Stern. I remember initially hearing about him in 2019 on Good Morning Football when Peter Schrager brought him up in a segment as a young up and coming mastermind. It intrigued me, and was curious where he would go in the NFL.

Starting in 2013, Stern was a student assistant to the coaching staff at Yale before making the jump to the NFL in 2016 joining the Ravens staff that included Hammock, Macdonald and Frazier. He started off as a coaching analytics assistant, before moving to football analyst in 2018 then football research coach in 2020. Stern then got some experience on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, becoming an offensive quality control coach in 2021, then a defensive quality control coach on 2023. Stern moved back to the offensive side of the ball, becoming an assistant quarterbacks coach and the director of football strategy in 2024 before being hired on with the Seahawks in 2026 as their pass game strategist.

Stern, like Fleury, has experience coaching offense, defense, and studying analytics. He helped the Ravens understand in-game when it would be best to go for it on 4th down or punt. He understands both the human aspect and the analytical aspect of the game, and has spent nearly a decade learning how both work together. He will be a key part of this offense and someone Fleury can use to know what to do in different situations.

John Benton, Offensive Line coach

The man. The myth. The legend. The coach who helped turn a Seahawks offensive line that was ranked in the 30’s to one that was ranked 17th by FTN who believe it can be ranked in the top 15 by the end of 2026. John Benton has coached under Gary Kubiak, Kyle Shanahan, Gus Bradley, and Robert Saleh to name a few. Last year, he helped Rick Dennison and Klint Kubiak turn the Seahawks offense into one of top units in the league.

In college, Benton was an offensive lineman back at Colorado State University from 1983 through 1986. He started coaching in 1990 at California University (PA) as an offensive line coach, a position he would continue to coach for 17 years at the collegiate level including at Colorado State where he would also add on the title of co-offensive coordinator in 2000.

Benton made the jump into the NFL in 2004, when he became the offensive line coach with the Rams, as well as the Texans under Gary Kubiak (2006-2013), the Dolphins (2014-2015), the Jaguars (2016), and 49ers under Shanahan (2017-2020). With the Jets in 2021, he would also add on the title of run game coordinator to go along with being the offensive line coach. In 2024, he joined the Saints along with Klint Kubiak and Rick Dennison before all three joined the Seahawks in 2025.

To say Benton knows offenses would be an understatement. As a former lineman, as well as coaching offensive line since 1990, he has 36 years coaching the position, along with experience being an offensive coordinator and a run game coordinator. He knows the wide zone scheme, and pounded the table for players like Grey Zabel, Bryce Cabeldue, Mason Richman, and Beau Stephens. He also has helped Anthony Bradford cut down on his penalties and continually improve his play. He will be an integral part of helping Fleury this upcoming season.

Jake Peetz, Quarterbacks coach/Pass Game Coordinator

A familiar name for many Seahawks fans, and one many thought could be the next offensive coordinator. In high school he played tight end, cornerback, defensive end, and long snapper. In college at Nebraska from 2003 to 2005, he played defensive back and long snapper. Once he graduated, he started his coaching career at Santa Barbara City College as the special teams coordinator, safeties coach, and strength and conditioning coordinator. In 2007, he was a defensive assistant at UCLA. In 2008, he would get his first NFL job as a scout for the Jaguars before moving to coaching for the organization as the assistant quarterbacks coach in 2012.

Peetz would go back to the college ranks in 2013, becoming an offensive analyst at Alabama before going back to the NFL in 2014, landing the offensive quality control coach job with Washington where he would first work with Sean McVay who was the offensive coordinator. He started his three year stint with the Raiders in 2015 as a senior offensive assistant and later quarterbacks coach. Peetz in 2018 would get his old position back at Alabama as an offensive analyst.

Peetz joined the Panthers organization in 2019 for two years coaching both running backs and quarterbacks. Then in 2021 he was hired by LSU as its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Peetz linked back up with McVay in 2022 as an offensive assistant before promoting to pass game specialist in 2023. Then in 2024 he joined the Seahawks as the pass game coordinator before adding the familiar title of quarterbacks coach in 2026 to his duties as pass game coordinator.

Peetz is a lot like Fleury, having coached offense, defense, and special teams. He is also unique in that he also played offense, defense, and special teams. He knows all three phases of the sport, and has play calling experience. Peetz will indeed be someone the Fleury can pick the brain of in the middle of a game like Shanahan would do with him.

Justin Outten, Run Game Coordinator

Justin Outten’s football experience is a fascinating one. He was a college center at Syracuse from 2003 to 2006 and was a grad assistant there in 2007. He became a high school coach in 2008 at Westfield High School in Texas for the next eight years, where he put on the hats of offensive line coach, offensive coordinator, and assistant head coach. Outten began his NFL coaching journey in 2016, joining the Dan Quin- led Falcons, with whom he’d spend the next three years, starting off as a coaching intern, then in 2017 moving up to offensive assistant under Steve Sarkisian.

In 2019, Outten went to Green Bay and became their tight ends coach for the next three years. After Green Bay, he joined the Broncos organization in 2022 as their offensive coordinator, coaching along side Klint Kubiak. In 2023, the Titans asked Outten to join their staff for the next two years, initially as their running backs coach and run game coordinator, then the following year as their tight ends coach. Mike Macdonald came calling in 2025, asking Outten to join the Seahawks coaching staff as their run game specialist and assistant offensive line coach working beside Benton. He also picked up coaching the running backs when Kennedy Polamalu took a leave of absence in December. Outten then got a promotion and will be the run game coordinator in 2026.

Outten has coached beside some of the best offensive minds in the NFL: Kyle Shanahan, Mike McDaniel, Klint Kubiak, Mike and Matt LaFleur. Having been a college center and grad assistant, high school coach, and NFL coach, he has experience coaching in all three levels. Outten also has experience coaching multiple positions and offensive coordinator. That wealth of experience with be something Fleury will tap into, especially with having familiarity with the Shanahan style of offense.

Putting it all together

These six coaches will all play a big part in the offense this upcoming season. The diverse experience they bring to the table to prove to be invaluable, and could lift this offense even higher than it was last season. Fleury has several coaches on this offensive staff with play calling experience that he can tap into, many who understand both the offense and defense, and Stern with the analytics background much like himself. It is also interesting to see how many similar connections these coaches have with one another, which should also help build a common understand and foundation that they can build upon. It is an exciting future ahead for this Seahawks offense. As Macdonald would say, it is time to run it forward!

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos