Seattle Seahawks safety Nick Emmanwori established himself as one of the most promising defenders in the league in his rookie season. After being a key cog in the Seahawks’ Super Bowl LX win against the New England Patriots, Emmanwori finished second in the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting, behind Cleveland Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger.
Seattle Seahawks Safety Receives Mixed Reviews
Emmanwori finished No. 6 in a list compiled by ESPN of the league’s best safeties voted for by scouts, executives, and coaches. The talented safety received mixed evaluations from the voters, with one AFC executive slamming his ability, while another praised his physical measurables and potential.
“Major upside,” an NFL coordinator said. “He’s so impressive for where he is at such a young age. He’s got all the physical measurables.”
“However, one AFC executive countered that Emmanwori has ‘one-trick pony’ to his game because he doesn’t play as well going backward as some of the top safeties,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported.
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Emmanwori registered 81 tackles, 11 passes defended, 2.5 sacks, and one interception for the Seahawks last season, earning a PFN Safety Impact score of 77.2, ranking him at No. 34 in the NFL. He had a pass breakup rate of 2.1%, which was the second best among safeties and was also the only player in the league with at least 15 pressures and 10 pass breakups last season.
During a segment of “Seattle Sports” last month, coach Mike Macdonald revealed the Seahawks’ plan for Emmanwori’s growth next season.
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“There’s more things that Nick can do on the field, and I think you’re looking at a balance of sharpening the things that he did last year, which is really great,” Macdonald said. “I mean, he had a tremendous year, so let’s go attack a lot of the fundamentals of what he’s doing last year to even make it more potent.
“But then there’s also some opportunities that aren’t big stretches in terms of asking him what he can do, where we can play him, things like that.”
Emmanwori was named to the SEC All-Freshman team after a promising freshman season for the South Carolina Gamecocks. He also clinched All-SEC first-team and first-team All-American honors in his final college football season.
Despite an impressive performance at the NFL Scouting Combine, Emmanwori slid to the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft before finally being selected No. 35 overall by the Seattle Seahawks, making him one of the steals of the draft.
