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Mike Macdonald is making a "significant change" to the role of a hidden gem on the Seattle Seahawks' defense.

He built the toughest defense in the NFL in 2025, but head coach Mike Macdonald is still looking for creative ways to make the Seattle Seahawks better on that side of the ball this year, including making a “significant change” to the role of a hidden gem along the front seven.

The change involves last season’s undrafted find Jared Ivey. He’s been “drilling with the defensive ends and scrimmaging on the end of the line with his hand on the ground” during OTAs, according to Gregg Bell of The Tacoma News Tribune.

It may not look like a major transition for a natural edge-rusher, but Ivey shifting to a three-point stance actually has greater implications. Specifically, for how the 2026 Seahawks will build depth at key spots up front.

Seahawks Changing Things for Hidden Gem

Ivey stuck on the roster as a rookie free agent who arrived from Ole Miss with little fanfare, but playing time proved elusive. He was limited to a mere two games and 15 snaps on defense because the 6-foot-6, 274-pounder’s physical profile didn’t lend itself well to Macdonald’s preference for leaner edge-rushers.

That preference is why Justin Melo of Seahawks Wire believes Ivey putting his hand in the dirt “represents a significant change from his rookie season, when he was tasked with being a stand-up rusher.”

As Melo put it, the switch “means Ivey is now competing for roster spots as a backup defensive lineman behind the likes of Leonard Williams, Rylie Mills, and Mike Morris. That is opposed to him competing behind outside pass rushers like Derick Hall and Uchenna Nwosu.”

Ivey aligning in a more inside role makes sense on a number of levels. Not least because the 24-year-old has the frame to be more of a force along the interior.

It’s an area where the Seahawks need bodies and fresh options. Sure things are in short supply, even when 2025 fifth-round pick Mills made a positive statement about his progress after an injury-disturbed rookie campaign.

Giving Ivey the chance to muscle his way into the rotation alongside Mills is a smart hedge from Macdonald. He needs young and versatile linemen capable of operating in roles similar to those played by veterans Williams, 31, and 34-year-old DeMarcus Lawrence.

Ivey has the raw athleticism for this demanding assignment, but Macdonald can’t ignore his remaining potential on the edge. Not when the Seahawks have had to overhaul their outside pass-rushers this offseason.

Mike Macdonald Reshuffling Defensive Front

Letting Mafe join the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency left Macdonald and defensive coordinator Aden Durde without a valuable roving disruptor up front. Mafe will be missed, but at least the Seahawks retained Hall and scooped Dante Fowler Jr. off the mature end of the free agency market.

Those moves keep the contingent of edge-rushers strong, but there’s still room for one more credible pocket-collapsing demon from the outside to emerge. It could be Ivey, although he’ll face competition from another undrafted gem already touted for big things.

Having both young players make the grade this offseason would be a dream scenario for Macdonald. His system relies on a volume approach based around multiple pass-rushers wrecking protection from numerous spots.

Ivey learning a new skill-set only increases the flexibility along Seattle’s D-line.