Seattle Seahawks defensive back Nick Emmanwori turned in a sensational rookie season en route to a Super Bowl LX title. The dynamic DB believes there is an even higher level to which he can take his game in Year 2.
"It's exciting for me because I can't wait to go to the offseason and put the work in," Emmanwori said recently on The Richard Sherman Podcast. "I know I'm just scratching the surface. I'm thinking of my prime, like how can I get to my prime? In my mind, this is just stuff that I'm putting together, but when I put everything together as far as the coverage and the pass rush and the playbook and just seeing the game, that's what I'm looking forward to."
In his first season, Emmanwori was a movable chess piece for Mike Macdonald, able to win from the slot, move into the box and even along the defensive line in certain alignments. The versatility and playmaking of the 6-foot-3, 220-pound DB completely unlocked the Seahawks defense.
Emmanwori played a pivotal role in getting to Super Bowl LX, with two key pass breakups -- one on Puka Nacua -- late in the first half of the NFC Championship Game win over the Los Angeles Rams, helping allow Seattle to retake the lead before halftime. A lead they'd never relinquish.
"That was definitely a cool moment. I just remember being in my zone that game. I was in the zone. … It was just natural," he said of his play versus L.A., which included three PBUs and five tackles. "Whatever's in the scheme, whatever's in the playbook, I would flawlessly kind of just adjust to it and I can just make those plays. So it was like, I'm guarding the running back, making the play, guarding Puka in the slot, like guarding Davante Adams. Setting the edge, getting off blocks. I was just really in the zone that game and we were just focused. It was just a different feeling."
Emmanwori said it felt like beating the Rams was for all the marbles, even with the Super Bowl remaining as a hurdle.
"No disrespect to the Patriots or nothing like that. I don't want to take nothing away from them, but that game, it felt like that game was legit," he said of the NFC Championship tilt. "You know how it is with the rivalries. The Rams, they come in, (Matthew) Stafford, he's a hell of a quarterback. (Sean) McVay always got a hell of a plan. That game was definitely different. It was a different type of game. It was live. I was in my zone."
Given that it took some time for the rookie to find his footing after an early season injury, there is room for growth in Emmanwori's game. With the Seahawks poised to potentially lose some key pieces on defense in free agency, the young DB taking another leap forward in Year 2 would ensure Macdonald's defense continues to evolve.
