Seahawks OC Ryan Grubb discusses nerves and excitement before Week 1

When the Seattle Seahawks take the field on Sunday against the Denver Broncos, they will be lead by a first time head coach in Mike Macdonald, coaching his first game as the top man. However, Macdonald will not be the only new kid at school. Joining him in the “firsts” department will be offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who was with the Washington Huskies the last two seasons.

Not only is it Grubb’s first job as an NFL offensive coordinator, it’s his first job in the NFL… period. At any coaching position. Talk about being nervous.

Which, actually, is what Grubb did on Thursday. Grubb spoke to the media and gave an honest answer, which was literally his admission of nerves. Who could blame him? This is the most watched television product in the United States and there’s a mountain of high hopes surrounding his hire. With hope comes something else: expectations.

While Grubb is understandably nervous, he is also excited. “I always get nervous. I want to do great. I play off that,” Grubb mentioned confidently.

Grubb also spoke highly of his quarterback, Geno Smith, who he has routinely praised all offseason. Smith, coming off back to back Pro Bowl seasons, will look to regain his 2022 form which set the Seahawks’ single season passing record. After praising Smith’s toughness and perseverance he mentioned “one of the best things about Geno is he still feels like he has not played his best football yet. And that’s exciting to be able to coach a guy like that.”

All in all, the 12th Man should be encouraged to hear the honesty and excitement from their new offensive coordinator. While there is the weight of expecation on Grubb, there is little reason to doubt he will be able to handle it. If Grubb can translate his collegiate system to the NFL successfully, the Seahawks could very easily field one of the more explosive units in the league.

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