It’s been weeks since the confetti settled on Seattle’s streets. But the Super Bowl LX champions are already navigating questions that have nothing to do with football. Quarterback Sam Darnold, head coach Mike Macdonald, and the rest of the Seattle Seahawks are waiting, not for validation, but for a White House phone call that simply hasn’t come.

Has President Donald Trump invited the champions to the White House? At the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Mike Macdonald addressed the question head-on.

“I expect to get an invitation, and then we’ll go from there,” Macdonald said. “Just like we do everything else.”

The “we” in Macdonald’s update seems deliberate. He made it clear that the team will decide collectively if they will go in case the invite does arrive. It’s a reflection of the same locker room unity that delivered Seattle its Super Bowl crown.

But the White House isn’t talking. The Seattle Times reportedly filed four separate inquiries about a potential Seahawks visit and received zero responses. Meanwhile, an NFL source had also confirmed that no invitation had been extended to the team before Mike Macdonald gave his own confirmation. A tradition that dates back ages now sits in awkward, politically charged limbo.

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The contrast with the Philadelphia Eagles here is quite stark. After Philly’s Super Bowl LIX win following the 2024 season, Trump publicly announced the invite, saying, “They deserve to be down here.” Head coach Nick Sirianni graciously accepted the invite, and the visit went smoothly. But Seattle’s political DNA is different, and the White House’s silence has not gone unnoticed.

Seattle Storm legend Sue Bird captured the cultural shift herself long ago. The basketball icon noted back in 2018 that whether the invite arrives or not, the tradition has lost its luster.

“It doesn’t feel exciting,” Bird had said. “Nobody wants to go. It’s totally changed, and that’s disappointing because it used to be something that most athletes looked forward to.”

Mike Macdonald expects an invitation, sure, but he isn’t exactly waiting on Washington. While D.C. deliberates, Seattle is already building toward a return to the Super Bowl stage.

Mike Macdonald is building a dynasty, one coach at a time

Defending a Super Bowl title often creates good problems, and Mike Macdonald has plenty. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak barely stepped off the field before telling reporters that he’s off to the Las Vegas Raiders as their new head coach. Quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko is widely expected to follow suit as Vegas’ offensive coordinator by NFL insiders like Albert Breer. Losing both in one offseason is a genuine challenge, but Macdonald seems ready for it.

Macdonald’s answer came in the form of raiding the Baltimore Ravens. Former Ravens defensive coordinator Zach Orr, who took over the role when Macdonald left for Seattle, comes aboard as inside linebackers coach. Daniel Stern, Baltimore’s director of football strategy and assistant quarterbacks coach for ten seasons, follows as a potential pass game strategist.

Both of them are rooted in Macdonald’s Ravens tenure. But that’s not all. On offense, Brian Fleury, San Francisco 49ers’ tight ends coach and run game coordinator for seven seasons, was installed as the new offensive coordinator.

But the boldest hire was perhaps that of Thomas Hammock. He was notably poached from Northern Illinois after seven seasons as their head coach. Hammock led NIU to the 2021 MAC Championship, back-to-back bowl wins in 2023 and 2024, and a stunning last-second upset over No. 5 Notre Dame in September 2024. He joins Seattle as running backs coach and senior offensive assistant, bringing both college pedigree and a well-documented relationship with Macdonald’s system.

Macdonald also signed 16 players to futures contracts. This list notably includes defensive end Jalan Gaines, whose blocked field goal against the Raiders in the 2025 preseason put scouts on notice. Now, the White House may have gone quiet on Seattle’s invite, but Mike Macdonald, clearly, is making some noise of his own.