Two years after leaving the Baltimore Ravens and John Harbaugh's staff, Mike Macdonald has won the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks - and the New York Giants head coach was touched
12:51 ET, 13 Feb 2026
Mike Macdonald led the Seahawks to a second Super Bowl title in franchise history
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Mike Macdonald led the Seahawks to a second Super Bowl title in franchise history(Image: Getty Images)
John Harbaugh appeared to get emotional as he watched Mike Macdonald heap praise on his “mentor” before winning the Super Bowl.
Earlier this offseason, the New York Giants made a huge move by hiring Harbaugh as head coach after firing Brian Daboll in November. The Super Bowl winner is already attracting some big names to his coaching staff, including former Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy.
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However, on Sunday at Levi's Stadium, Macdonald joined the new Giants head coach in the pantheon of Super Bowl champions. His Seattle Seahawks crushed the New England Patriots, clinching a 29-13 victory in Super Bowl LX.
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Macdonald spent 12 seasons with the Ravens, beginning in 2014 as a coaching intern. He worked his way up the ranks as a defensive assistant, defensive backs coach, linebackers coach, and finally landed the defensive coordinator role in 2022.
Speaking ahead of the Super Bowl, Macdonald credited Harbaugh for his mentorship and foundational coaching principles. He told reporters: “I don't think it's possible to overstate his influence on me.
“I love John Harbaugh. He’s one of my biggest mentors. One of the people to take chances on me when other people weren’t. He had a vision for me and my career that I probably didn’t have for myself.
“All those principles that are a part of his program that he's about as a person resonated with me. Those are a lot of the foundational principles that we brought to Seattle... I can't tell you how much I love him.”
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John Harbaugh appeared to fight back some tears as he addressed Mike Macdonald's praise
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John Harbaugh appeared to fight back some tears as he addressed Mike Macdonald's praise(Image: FOX)
During a FOX Sports segment, Harbaugh was shown a clip of Macdonald heaping praise on his former coach across his Super Bowl media duties. The 63-year-old was immediately moved and got slightly emotional upon hearing Macdonald’s words.
“I read it, but this is the first time I’ve heard him say it,” Harbaugh admitted. “It kinda makes me choked up. It’s a meaningful thing.
“I remember telling him one time, ‘It’s OK to be a little embarrassed by what you want to accomplish. If people aren’t laughing at your dream when you tell them, then your dream’s not big enough.’
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“And here he is now, he’s a Super Bowl champion because he was willing to believe it was possible.”
As head coach of the Seahawks, Macdonald has led the team to successive winning seasons in his two years in charge.
The Super Bowl win marked the 38-year-old's first championship as head coach, just two seasons into his Seattle tenure - and he will come face-to-face with Harbaugh in 2026 as the Seahawks are scheduled to host the Giants in a regular-season contest.