How Seahawks' Mike Macdonald could make special NFL history with Super Bowl 60 win

The Seattle Seahawks are in the Super Bowl and are going up against the New England Patriots for a chance to win their second Super Bowl title in franchise history.

While the performances from Sam Darnold, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Kenneth Walker III, and Klint Kubiak on offense get a lot of attention, the defensive side of the ball is just as, if not more impressive.

Mike Macdonald has this unit playing incredibly well. And, as Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic notes, Macdonald can make some history in the Super Bowl. A win over the Patriots, and Macdonald would do something no other coach has ever done before.

How Mike Macdonald can make special Super Bowl history

"On Sunday against the New England Patriots, Macdonald can become the first head coach to serve as primary defensive play caller for a Super Bowl champion, based on The Athletic's research," Dugar writes.

From the first Super Bowl in 1967, when the Green Bay Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs, to the 2025 Super Bowl, when the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Chiefs, there hasn't been a single head coach to win the Super Bowl who calls plays for the defense.

While some coaches might've had input on the defensive side of the ball, like Bill Belichick, a few others, no one has done what Macdonald would do with a win.

Beating the Patriots on Sunday would not only give the Seahawks their second Super Bowl title, but it would make for the first time a head coach who calls plays for the defense would win the Super Bowl.

More: ESPN's Super Bowl predictions are in, and it's not close between Seahawks and Patriots

While there's been plenty of offensive play-calling head coaches to win the Super Bowl, none have ever done so as a defensive play-caller.

Macdonald has his unit playing like one of the best defenses in recent NFL history, and if that can carry over to the Super Bowl, then he would make history with one of the more special performances of the Super Bowl era from a head coach.

This is some wild history on the line for Macdonald, as it's hard to believe that in the 59 years of the Super Bowl, there hasn't been one primary defensive play caller to win the big game.

Macdonald can break that streak this Sunday, and etch his name in NFL history with one of the best coaching performances ever.

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