Seahawks fire defensive coordinator Ken Norton after four seasons

Ken Norton has been fired as the Seattle Seahawks’ defensive coordinator, the team announced on Tuesday afternoon.

Seattle announced it had parted ways with Norton, as well as defensive passing game coordinator Andre Curtis.

It marks the club’s initial move toward change following a disappointing 7-10 season.

Norton’s fourth season as the team’s defensive coordinator was a tough one. The Seahawks ranked 28th in the NFL in total defense (379.1 yards per game) and 31st in pass defense (265.5 per game). Thanks to one of the best red-zone defenses in the league, however, Seattle’s scoring defense (21.5 points per game) ranked tied for 11th.

Opponents threw with ease against the Seahawks’ secondary, however, particularly early in the season.

Cornerback was a concern from the outset of Norton’s last year, with the unit having lost Shaquill Griffin to free agency and doing little in the offseason to improve at the position. Some midseason changes, including the release of Tre Flowers, brought about some improvement, but not enough for Norton to be retained. Later in the year, one of Seattle’s most talented defenders, safety Jamal Adams, was lost for the season to a shoulder injury.

Norton, 55, coached linebackers at USC before breaking into the NFL coaching ranks as the Seahawks linebackers coach from 2010-2014. From there, he served as the Raiders’ defensive coordinator for three seasons before returning to the Seahawks as DC in 2018.

He played 13 NFL seasons as a linebacker with the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers from 1988-2000.

Curtis was also with the Seahawks for four seasons.

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