Seattle Seahawks coach Macdonald's career is just now beginning

It's five games into Mike Macdonald's career as coach of the Seattle Seahawks, and in some ways it feels like it's just beginning. But really this time.

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You're probably thinking that sounds crazy and I know why. His coaching career began when he signed his contract, met the media and hired his staff. He had to design and communicate his vision, scheme and language. He worked with general manager John Schneider to bring in the types of players he needed. He talked to the team, ran a training camp, got his first wins and losses in the preseason and regular season. All of these moments were important, all of them fraught with danger, all of which were handled confidently by the youngest head coach in the league.

We celebrated his first successes. He seems like a smart guy and his team seemed to respond immediately to his style. We experienced more communication and discipline than we were used to. And three games into his career – no, three wins into his career – everything went as smoothly as possible. So smoothly that even a defeat in Detroit was hardly seen as friction. Given the quality of the opposition, the number of injured defenders and the offensive success, it was easy to write this off.

But the home defeat against the Giants broke the spell.

The Giants don't have a good quarterback. They don't have a ton of talent and were missing two of their best weapons. That wasn't in the script.

This is exactly why I think Macdonald's career is just now really beginning. We often hear that NFL coordinators like to plan the first 15 plays of each game before reacting from there. Well, he's past the top 15 and now it's time to adjust.

You may hear some Seahawks fans grumbling. Maybe you know someone who has “lost their self-confidence”. The truth is that it doesn't really matter. Fans can (over)react every week without having much impact. But this is Macdonald's first big test with his players. You have to respect the way he handles the challenge of a losing streak.

We knew there would be fluctuations this season. This is what happens to most NFL teams and certainly rookie coaches too. Macdonald wasn't hired for his experience or simply to make an immediate impression. This was a long term investment. He himself admits that he is still learning and experiencing things for the first time. We understand that he is keen to learn from these experiences and that this should serve him well as his career progresses.

But how he deals with his first losing streak is a big deal. Losing is part of everyday life in sports, but it tests completely different muscles than almost anything else. We've seen it doom competitors who never learned to process it. We've seen seemingly solid locker rooms fall apart at the seams. We have seen trainers lose control of the ship.

To claim that everything is on the table after two defeats is ridiculous. Macdonald will learn from mistakes along the way and I would bet he has an exceptionally long leash. But this will be his first chance to answer some very important questions.

• Can it remain constant? If there's one thing players (and staff) complain about, it's the inconsistency of their boss. People want their leader to be the same person in all situations so that their world is predictable. Predictability creates comfort. And consistency builds self-confidence.

• Can he walk the fine line between adapting and sticking to his principles? Macdonald spoke this week about the difference between principles (which are ironclad) and methods (which are more malleable). I have no doubt he understands the difference and will act accordingly. But the challenge is communicating this to players, who need to know that he has solutions but doesn't panic. You want to adapt; They don't want to leave the ship.

• How do the players deal with his responsibilities? Three weeks into the season, ESPN's Brady Henderson reported on some of Macdonald's early efforts to instill some level of responsibility. We heard how he had “called out” players who had failed the fitness test and then “raised the issue in front of the rest of the team”. He demands accountability and wants to be the enforcer.

This style can be extremely effective, especially as a 180-degree change from its predecessor. This locker room probably needed a tough talk. But how will it be received after a few defeats? Macdonald appears to be as hard on himself as he is on his players and that should give him the credibility to progress in his own style. But this is new territory. The loss tests that credibility and responsibility.

The Mike Macdonald era began last winter and the foundation for everything he wants to achieve has clearly been laid since the day he was hired. Now we learn how solidly he built the foundation. Because the first pressure surges are just now making themselves felt.

How he deals with it will be important. Whether the Seahawks win will probably be more important. As we know, nothing relieves the pressure like a win. And he has the biggest chance of his young career on Thursday evening.

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