Mike Macdonald sends message to Seahawks about dealing with stacked NFC West

The perception exists that the NFC West will be the best division in the NFL. 

As Vic Tafur of The Athletic noted, a San Francisco 49ers team that earned a playoff win last season is "healthy" after it dealt with an injury crisis. A Los Angeles Rams side that was a win away from playing the Super Bowl acquired pass-rusher Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns in June, and may soon have defensive superstar Aaron Donald back on their roster. 

Meanwhile, the Seattle Seahawks will enter September as the reigning Super Bowl champions. Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald seemingly isn't losing sleep over the fact that his club will have to play the 49ers and Rams twice during the upcoming campaign. 

Mike Macdonald worried about the Seahawks, not other teams possibly improving

"I don’t care," Macdonald recently said about the states of other teams, per Tafur. "Don’t care. If you start worrying about what everybody else is doing, it’s just mentally taxing. It’s so much easier if you don’t. Let’s just worry about the Seahawks and being the best version of ourselves and getting better every day."

The 49ers made a big splash when they signed longtime Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans early in free agency. As for the Rams, they acquired cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson before Los Angeles traded for Garrett, who officially became a two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year this past February.

As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Rams as the overall betting favorites at +550 odds to win Super Bowl LXI in February 2027. The Seahawks were fourth on the list at +1100 odds, while the Niners were at +1900 odds. 

Seahawks will be ready to play who is on the schedule

"No reaction," Macdonald said about the Rams and 49ers presumably strengthening their rosters during the offseason. "I mean, look, those are great players, and they’re doing what they do. It probably feels like that’s what’s best for their teams, what they need to do, and that’s good. When it’s time to play those guys, we’ll be ready and put together a game plan and go rock and roll."

Seattle will open the 2026 season with a Super Bowl rematch versus the New England Patriots on Sept. 9. The Patriots' passing attack should be better than it was last season, as the club acquired wide receiver A.J. Brown from the Philadelphia Eagles in June.

"Every team is going to grow every year," Macdonald added. "That’s just the way the NFL goes."