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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 07: Ricky Pearsall #1 of the San Francisco 49ers reacts in front of Riq Woolen #27 of the Seattle Seahawks during the fourth quarter during the game at Lumen Field on September 07, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
RENTON, Wash. - Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald left the door open for a change to their starting cornerback spot after Riq Woolen's lapses in Sunday's loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Woolen allowed a 45-yard completion to Ricky Pearsall on the game-winning drive, and then was beaten to the football by backup tight end Jake Tonges for a 4-yard touchdown that gave the 49ers a 17-13 lead with 1:34 left to play.
When asked on Wednesday if Woolen would start this week," Macdonald's reply was tepid.
"We'll see," he said.
On Monday, Macdonald made it clear that Josh Jobe was pushing for more playing time after his strong performance against the 49ers.
"I thought he played a tremendous football game. Played physical, played smart, played disciplined, finished his plays right. I thought he played a great game," Macdonald said.
"You go out and you produce, why would we not play you?"
The issue for Woolen is that his two biggest errors came in the most inopportune moments.
"It's like a quiz," Woolen said. "It's like I did 98 percent on the quiz and I just didn't put my name on it and then I got two percent taken off because I didn't finish the test or pay attention to details like something small about putting my name on the test."
The 45-yard catch to Pearsall moved the 49ers into Seattle territory after being shut down most of the second half by the Seahawks' defense.
"I could have just played the ball better," Woolen said of the play on Wednesday. "I ran the route for him, I knew what type of route it was. I just got to execute and attack the ball and not lose track of the ball."
Then on the touchdown pass, it took eight seconds for 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy to throw the ball on a play that had been very well defended. However, Tonges was able to work around Woolen to beat him to the ball as Woolen's body position allowed Tonges the chance to get to the ball.
"I've just got to attack the ball, that's pretty much it," Woolen said.
Woolen was told of Macdonald's comments about the starting job at corner and for his thoughts on the matter.
"He's the head man, so whatever he say goes," Woolen said. "I'm not going to go against it. Other than that, I can just continue to be Riq and continue to be a great player that I have been doing."
Additionally, Macdonald was asked how Woolen was handling the week after the plays on Sunday.
"He's great," Macdonald said. "I mean, we had a similar situation last year, Every person we've had a conversation (with) about what their role is going to be and things like that, one, I mean, you need to operate like that as a coaching staff, keep it real with them. But they've been tremendous, you know. Tell them with love, tell them the truth, and let's go to work."
The obvious move would be for Jobe to enter the starting lineup with Woolen becoming the player rotating in when Seattle plays nickel defense. Woolen would remain a big contributor to Seattle's defense as Jobe played 80 percent of the team's defensive snaps last week, but the loss of the starting spot would indicate some loss of faith in their 2022 Pro Bowl corner.
"I know that coach wants to have his best players out there," Woolen said. "At the same time, that can change week in and week out what type of defensive personnel we're going to have just because offenses change each and every week. All I can do is be a great teammate and a great player and that's it."
It's the nature of the cornerback position that negative plays are going to happen. You aren't going to stop every throw your direction. Woolen says it's still about moving on quickly.
"Next play, next opportunity type of thing," Woolen said. "You can't just get stuck on the opportunity that you failed on. There's a million other opportunities you can pass on."
But it also seems like such a decision would be just as much about the strong play of Jobe for Seattle. Macdonald was glowing in his comments about Jobe's play and journey with the team on Wednesday.
"I love telling the story because this time last year, he wasn't playing for us," Macdonald said. "This is a guy that has come in and really bought into the process, and the details matter for him, and he does it every day. There's a consistency there that you respect, and he's earned these opportunities, which is really cool. If you were the coach of the team, wouldn't you want it to work like that? Guys coming in, earning their opportunities, developing, growing as players, as people, that's what he's done."
A decision on Nick Emmanwori is coming later in the week.
Head coach Mike Macdonald said they have not yet made their decision on a roster move for safety Nick Emmanwori after suffering a high-ankle sprain on Sunday,
"I said that we were going to have a decision in the next day or two. I think we're going to take it throughout the week to decide what we're going to do," Macdonald said.
Macdonald said on Monday that Emmanwori is considered week-to-week after being diagnosed with a high-ankle sprain. Emmanwori was injured just five defensive plays into the game, making a stop on 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey. From the replay, it appeared as though Seahawks linebacker Demarcus Lawrence happened to brace his right hand for a fall directly on Emmanwori's ankle.
If Emmanwori is placed on injured reserve, he'll have to miss a minimum of four games before being eligible to return to the roster. The soonest he would be able to return would be in Week 6 at the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Macdonald was asked if it was a matter of seeing how Emmanwori was progressing through the week before making the move.
"That's a big part of it," Macdonald said.
In general, teams wait to make roster moves until they absolutely have to. The Seahawks can wait until Saturday without affecting a timeline to return to action for Emmanwori before placing him on injured reserve. There's no reason to add a player to the roster today from the practice squad when you can do it on Saturday. That ensures that the player you want to put on the roster also doesn't get injured during the week to require yet another unnecessary roster move.
The replacement task for Emmanwori's role will come in different ways for Seattle, though Macdonald wasn't willing to share those plans on Wednesday.
"Probably not going to tell you how we're going to match them this week," he said. "Let them figure that out on Sunday."
A promotion of D'Anthony Bell from the practice squad would be the easiest roster move the team could make to fill Emmanwori's role. Bell made the team's initial 53-man roster before being waived to accommodate the waiver claim of linebacker Chazz Surratt. He re-signed with the team to the practice squad.
The Source: Information in this story came from FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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