From Undrafted to Super Bowl Champ, Ty Okada Keeps Seizing ‘Special’ Opportunity With Seahawks
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Seattle Seahawks safety Ty Okada (39) tackles Los Angeles Rams tight end Terrance Ferguson (18) in the second half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images [/caption]
RENTON, Wash. - Now heading into his fourth NFL season with the Seattle Seahawks and soon to have a Super Bowl ring coming his way, Ty Okada would love to say he expected such successes all along after going undrafted out of Montana State.
But coming from humble beginnings growing up in Woodbury, Minnesota and starring for an under-the-radar FCS program located in Bozeman, Montana collegiately, while Okada isn’t hurting in the confidence department and believes in his talent, making such proclamations wouldn’t be relaying quite the whole truth. Like most players who don’t hear their names called on draft weekend and sit on what seems like a chronic roster bubble, he battled through bouts of insecurity and uncertainty as he tried to stick around and survive in a league known for short careers that can end in a flash.
However, Okada’s resolve never wavered when the pressure of such doubts may have dragged down other players under similar circumstances, and the Seahawks continued to reward him with chances to prove his mettle. Backed by a strong support system around him in and out of the team facility, he kept on fighting, and with a couple of injuries opening the door last fall, he finally made a name for himself as a valuable member of coach Mike Macdonald’s “Dark Side” defense.
“I think I'd be lying to you if I told you that there weren't those moments of doubt,” Okada said in an interview with the Locked On Seahawks podcast. “But the Seahawks, as an organization, they have just such a great, strong history of undrafted guys that have been able to prove themselves and make it. And I think that's what's so special about this organization as a whole, is if you can prove that, if you can carve out a path and a role for yourself and you own that job and you continue to progress and grow on that, you will be given an opportunity here.”
Despite playing well in training camp and preseason games after signing as a priority free agent, Okada came up short of making the final 53-man roster in 2023 and 2024, as the Seahawks cut him in late August in both instances. He spent extensive time on the practice squad after going unclaimed off the waiver wire, playing in nine total regular season games in those two seasons as a special teamer with only 12 combined defensive snaps during that span.
Being on what Macdonald calls the “ready squad” is better than being out of the league completely. Still, nobody could have blamed Okada if he became frustrated by what seemed like a lack of progress.
But while he bided time waiting for a chance to show what he could do on Sundays beyond being a special teams pinch hitter, Okada’s work ethic, versatility, and mindset left a lasting impression on Macdonald and his staff, putting the young defender on the map as a player the team could count on to perform at a high level when called upon. Once Seattle reported for camp last summer, after putting in all of the hard work behind the scenes, he had developed into more than just a fringe NFL roster talent, receiving well-deserved snaps with the first team defense as a third safety during the dog days of summer.
Even when mistakes were made on the practice field, Okada always kept coming right back with short-term memory and making plays in team sessions, endearing himself to his teammates as an outstanding communicator and continuing to extend his reach in terms of positional flexibility. In the preseason, he may have clinched himself a roster spot to open a season for the first time with a spectacular diving interception against the Packers.
“That's just life of playing DB,” Okada said of being under the microscope at a heavily scrutinized position. “And we wear it as a badge of honor. Whether you're playing corner, nickel, safety in our defense, it's on us to be able to communicate, be on the same page. And as a safety specifically, you take that on your shoulders and you understand that it's your duty to communicate extremely well. Make sure that coverage calls are given to the linebackers and corners, and you wear it as a badge of honor and you own it. And in this defense, it's expected of you.”
Those practice and game reps wound up being invaluable for Okada and the Seahawks, as Pro Bowl safety Julian Love struggled through a lingering hamstring injury in the middle of the season that ultimately cost him nine out of 10 games. The ex-Bobcat filled in admirably alongside Coby Bryant in the secondary, showing off a well-rounded skill set racking up open field tackles in bunches, getting his hands on an interception and multiple pass breakups, and making a splash as a pass rusher on rare blitz opportunities.
By the time Bryant missed the final two regular season games with a knee injury, Okada had started a career-high 11 games in the Seahawks’ secondary, posting 65 tackles, 1.5 sacks, a highlight-reel interception in a primetime road win over the Commanders, a fumble recovery, and five pass breakups. Per Pro Football Focus charting, he finished in the top 25 among qualified safeties in quarterback pressures, missed tackle rate, and yards allowed in coverage, showcasing his strong all-around breakout season via numbers.
Staying humble about his accomplishments, Okada referenced those before him who didn’t get drafted and excelled in Seattle, lauding general manager John Schneider and everyone in the organization for building and sustaining a culture that consistently fosters genuine opportunities for such success stories to be written in the first place. He also cited his family, including his parents and fiancé Ahna, who he will marry in July, as well as his strong faith as bedrocks that have allowed him to flourish even when things didn’t always go as planned along the journey.
“There have been so many guys, not just myself, but just everyone in the organization, owning, understanding their 1/11th [responsibility] and just dominating that role and continuing to progress,” Okada remarked. “I'd be remiss if I didn't mention my family and my faith in there as well throughout those moments of doubt. Just having such a great support system as well.”
Between the lines, Okada credited Macdonald, defensive backs coach Karl Scott, and the rest of the staff for being able to break down a complex scheme into manageable, digestible parts, allowing him and his teammates to play fast without overburdening them with too many concepts thrown at them at once. They started with building blocks and after an adjustment period where Macdonald at one point blamed himself for trying to add too much too quickly in the midst of his first year as an NFL coach, he found a perfect sweet spot in that regard last season, ultimately finding ways to maximize deployment for a litany of position-flexible defensive backs in nickel and dime sets.
Over time, as their internal playbooks expanded at the right pace stacking concept after concept and roles continued to receive enhancements, a deep secondary headlined by All-Pro cornerback Devon Witherspoon and further bolstered by Okada’s junior year jump filling in for Love and Bryant developed a “special bond,” one that helped fuel the No. 1 scoring defense and play a guiding role in achieving arguably the best season in franchise history with 17 wins and a second Lombardi Trophy.
Behind closed doors, Macdonald has pushed the right buttons by investing in getting to know his players as men beyond football, which Okada believes has been vital in building that brotherhood. His genuine interest in learning about their families and hobbies away from the gridiron made it much easier to buy what the coach was selling after replacing a living legend in Pete Carroll, further gaining the respect of everyone in the locker room.
Such buy-in couldn’t have been more evident than in May and June of last year, as the Seahawks consistently had 95% or better turnouts for OTA and minicamp workouts. Those practices in helmets and shorts without contact served as a great first step that made earning a trip to the Super Bowl at Levis Stadium not feel too big, as Okada, his teammates, and coaches had put in the effort on and off the field to more than deserve that moment in the spotlight on the most prominent stage in pro sports.
“I think what I'll remember most is just being in the locker room afterwards with my teammates, my brothers, getting to that game itself. Once we were there, to me, this feels right,” Okada reminisced. “All the work that we had put in, the camaraderie, the culture, the standard that we had built as a team, it felt right that we were in that position. And then seeing that all come to fruition [was] just felt so special with that group of guys. I think what I'll remember most is the time in the locker room afterwards kind of reminiscing, not just about that game, but everything that it took to get there and to get to that point.”
Now back in action for Phase 2 of the offseason program with another round of OTAs just around the corner, Okada finds himself in an interesting position after signing an exclusive rights tender in March. On one hand, Bryant departed to sign a lucrative free agent contract with the Bears in free agency, leaving a major hole on the back end of Macdonald’s defense, providing a prime situation for the Minnesota native to take yet another step forward carrying the weight of a larger role next to Love and Nick Emmanwori.
But the Seahawks didn’t rest on their laurels without bringing in quality competition to push or even usurp Okada on the depth chart, investing their second round pick on TCU safety Bud Clark last month. The ball-hawking rookie picked off 15 passes in his final four seasons with the Horned Frogs, looking the part of a natural fit to succeed Bryant with similar strengths and comparable skill sets, and the former All-Big 12 selection will be gunning for significant snaps right away.
Playing with a perpetual chip on his shoulder as any undrafted player must to endure in the NFL, Okada won’t be fazed by any additions who provide extra competition at his position, however. After earning a career-high in snaps a year ago and showing he had everything it took to be a starter for Seattle, he believes he still has much left to prove to himself and the organization that gave him a real opportunity to shine from the undrafted ranks, starting with his continued pursuit of mastery as a tackler. There’s still much more to achieve.
And whenever a semblance of doubt starts to trickle in, Okada won’t have any worries about having the right people around him to right the ship and get back on the fast track to playing his finest football for the Seahawks.
“There's a whole bunch of stuff in my game that I'm looking to improve, but a big thing for me is I want to continually improve on my open field tackling. I think the emphasis that we put on our tackling, it helps us tremendously as a defense. And you saw as the year progressed, our missed tackle rate went down tremendously. And I think just continually being a consistent guy on the defense that can do that at a high level is super imperative.”
