SANTA CLARA, CA - JANUARY 03: DeMarcus Lawrence #0 of the Seattle Seahawks enters the field with the team before an NFL game between the Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers on January 3, 2026 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, CA. (Matthew Huang / Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)
RENTON, Wash. - It would be natural to make comparisons between the ‘Legion of Boom’ defenses of last decade and the standout unit the Seattle Seahawks have put together this season. Both units led the NFL in scoring defense and have carried the team to an NFC West title, No. 1 seed in the conference, and the potential to win a Super Bowl.
But how the two defenses express their dominance couldn't be more different.
The L.O.B. was carried by the strength of their back seven. A star-studded secondary with Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor paired with two outstanding linebackers in Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright to carry the unit. That's not to downplay the efforts of players like Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril and Brandon Mebane on the line of scrimmage, but the special sauce of those defenses was the back-end talent.
Those teams predominantly played Cover 1 (man-to-man) and Cover 3 (zone) defenses that relied on the elite center field abilities of Thomas as a deep safety with physical press coverage from Sherman, Brandon Browner and Byron Maxwell on the corners. That allowed the strength, size and athleticism of Chancellor to shine close to the line of scrimmage as an eighth defender in the box to slow opposing rushing attacks and cover players at the second level in pass coverage.
The 'Dark Side" moniker adopted by the 2026 defense finds their success in a completely different way.
Defensive line dominance.
"We want to have our own identity," defensive tackle Leonard Williams said. "To me, it makes sense why fan bases and people outside of here make comparisons like that because they were a great team that was here before, but for us inside we always knew we wanted our own identity."
Simply, the way the Seahawks play defense wouldn't work if not for the standout play of the guys up front.
Unlike the L.O.B., the ‘Dark Side’ primarily plays with two deep safeties (Cover 2 and Cover 4, among others), removing that extra run defender from the box near the line of scrimmage. Additionally, they play predominantly in a nickel defense with Nick Emmanwori on the field in place of a third linebacker. With Drake Thomas also undersized at linebacker, it means the Seahawks elect to play with a much smaller unit that's geared more favorably toward stopping passing attacks from a personnel standpoint.
In theory, that should make it easier for opposing rushing attacks to have success against the Seahawks. But the reality is that Seattle still excels against the run despite the scheme disadvantage.
The Seahawks finished the season ranked third in the NFL in stopping the run, allowing an average of just 91.9 yards per game. They've also gone 26 consecutive games without allowing a 100-yard rusher dating back to last season.
"As much as it feels good to get a sack, that feels just as good to hear," Williams said. "When we can play with two-high safety and stop the run with just four down linemen, knowing that at least two or three of us are getting double teams. That means not only are we stopping the double team, but we are beating the double teams. (Byron Murphy II) is one of the best in the league that I've seen do it in my career, and he's a young guy. To see our front be able to stop the run with just four guys is a testament to how we value and take pride in stopping the run."
Seattle's defensive line is regularly winning battles with opposing offenses despite being outnumbered. They can take a six-on-four mismatch in favor of the opposing offensive line and hold their ground effectively. With Williams and Murphy frequently requiring two linemen to be blocked, it frees up Thomas, Emmanwori and Ernest Jones IV to make plays without being blocked sufficiently.
"We got killers on our defensive front," safety Julian Love said. "This past game (against the 49ers) is a perfect example. I'm watching it all unfold and nothing is even coming close to me – especially in the run game – getting close to where I am on defense. And it's not just our stars. It's the depth we have. Guys are coming in and playing a big role."
DeMarcus Lawrence, Uchenna Nwosu and Derick Hall are strong edge players that equally do their part in disrupting the line of scrimmage, and Jarran Reed provides depth for Williams and Murphy on the interior.
"They're dominant up front. It's really cool to see what they're able to do, the havoc they're able to create," Thomas said. They're elite and the best at what they do. That does allow us to play and stay in our nickel personnel.
"That's our style of football, I would say they play super physical. They go through blocks, you know, they shed blocks, and they make plays. So those guys are really good at doing that."
Because the front can hold its own despite being outnumbered, it allows head coach Mike Macdonald and defensive coordinator Aden Durde the choice to dial up pressures and blitzes when they want to, not out of necessity.
Seahawks receiver Rashid Shaheed knows how tough the defense is to play against. He already played against them this season as an opponent with the New Orleans Saints.
"It was tough," Shaheed said. "I feel like those guys were flying around everywhere, and they knew what we were going to do before the play even occurred."
The Saints managed just 13 points as Alvin Kamara was held to 42 yards rushing on 18 carries. Shaheed had four catches for 42 yards for New Orleans that day before being traded to Seattle prior to the trade deadline.
"I think they're the best defense in NFL, and they proved that," Shaheed said. "To be able to play in those coverages and still create a bunch of havoc for offenses, it gives us a big advantage."
With such a strong unit coming together, it's certainly not a shock to have comparisons with the ‘Legion of Boom.’ But Williams, Reed, and Lawrence discussed a different moniker for their defense.
"I think throughout the season we were just feeling like we had a really special defense, you know, special players, and we were also just doing special things," Williams said. "We always hear of Legion of Boom, especially being in here. We were starting to get to a point like hey, maybe we deserve our own name, you know? I think guys started coming up with names and stuff like that and I think 'Dark Side' kind of stuck with us.
"We were talking about how it's dark here and we always talk about a style nobody wants to play and (the wall leading to practice) shows Lumen Field with the (Space) Needle and the atmosphere here, and I think Dark Side just kind of represents that."
That group held a red-hot San Francisco offense to just three points and 173 yards in their Week 18 victory that clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC. That followed another standout effort against the Carolina Panthers as they managed just 139 yards of offense against Seattle's defense.
"I think that's the biggest thing of our defense," Jones said. "No matter what happens, we really believe like getting in the end zone is going to be tough. Getting touchdowns out of anything is going to be tough against us if we play the style of play that we're used to and that we know how to."
Notes
– The Seahawks designated linebacker Chazz Surratt to return from the injured reserve list, and he practiced with the team on Tuesday, though he was limited. Surratt has missed the last six games of the season with an ankle injury. He would help Seattle on special teams if he's activated in time for Saturday's game with the 49ers.
– Tight end Elijah Arroyo, left tackle Charles Cross and safety Coby Bryant were all full participants in practice for Seattle on Tuesday. All three are coming off multi-game absences to end the season due to injuries.
Arroyo will need to be activated from injured reserve in order to play Saturday, but he appears on track to be ready.
– Cornerback Riq Woolen (oblique), defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence (Achilles) were limited in practice on Tuesday. Backup tackle Josh Jones (knee), and linebacker Tyrice Knight (shoulder) did not participate.
Injury Report:
The Source: Information in this story came from FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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