If the Seattle Seahawks are indeed at the start of a long period of success under Mike Macdonald, the riches of the 2025 draft are going to be seen as a crucial factor. Tory Horton and Elijah Arroyo are helping rapidly rebuild a potent passing attack.
Robbie Ouzts has returned from injury to provide the lead blocking [Kint Kubiak relies](https://12thmanrising.com/seattle-seahawks-klint-kubiak-handles-next-challenge-expose-something-deeper) on in his run game. And a stockpile of untested talent, from Jalen Milroe and Riley Mills all the way through Bryce Cabeldue and Ricky White III, could still yield some big-time contributors.
But if things go according to plan, it will be the top two picks – Grey Zabel and Nick Emmanwori – who will be cornerstones for the next decade. The fact that John Schneider was able to acquire both players – first-round talents – without really giving up much this year or in the future – could go down as one of his shrewdest moves as GM.
Zabel is already a solid starting guard who should continue to improve with experience and physical growth. And Emmanwori? Nick Emmanwori has a very realistic chance of being the best safety in the entire NFL three years down the road.
Seattle Seahawks rookie Nick Emmanwori is just scratching the surface of his vast ability
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In his very first game as a professional football player, [Nick Emmanwori stuffed](https://12thmanrising.com/seattle-seahawks-draft-pick-crash-defensive-rookie-year-race) all-world running back Christian McCaffrey for a two-yard loss. And he got hurt on the play. Bad omen. He was out for a month.
Since coming back, the former South Carolina phenom has been working his way back into the lineup. He has been in on more than 90% of the Seahawks’ defensive snaps in the last three games, making tackles all over the field, including a handful behind the line. He is 21 years old, and there is no limit as to where he might go.
The safety role in the NFL has probably undergone a greater evolution than any defensive position. Initially, safeties were tall, rangy players who patrolled the back end of the defense. They were tasked with preventing receivers from getting behind them. The best of them, like Minnesota’s Hall of Famer Paul Krause, were ball hawks who turned poor throws into interceptions at a remarkable rate.
Over time, the role morphed. They still provided deep coverage, but bigger, stronger safeties began cheating forward, getting more involved in plays near the line of scrimmage. Washington’s Ken Houston epitomized the new safety when he stonewalled Dallas’ Walt Garrison on the goal line in a famous Monday night game in 1973.
Houston was fast and tough, but he wasn’t noticeably bigger than a lot of the safeties who preceded him. Ronnie Lott was a little bigger, and Steve Atwater was a lot bigger. They were the prototypes of the 1990s. And they were only the beginning.
Washington’s Sean Taylor was among the most freakishly gifted athletes the NFL has ever seen. At 6’2”, 231 pounds, he had receiver speed and was just emerging as an elite player when his life was tragically cut short in 2007. Seattle developed a player much like Taylor in Kam Chancellor, who fit that mold with great success.
Safeties were still expected to be fast. They were still expected to cover a lot of ground deep. But now, the best ones were also going to make plays on the line. And behind the line. The best safeties now play all over the field.
Nick Emmanwori could not have landed in a better spot. His head coach, Macdonald, helped develop the current state-of-the-art safety when he coached in Baltimore. Kyle Hamilton is the best, most versatile safety in the NFL.
He is 6’4”, 218, and has 4.6 speed. He lines up everywhere and makes plays. Much of Macdonald’s Baltimore Ravens’ defense in 2023 was predicated on how good and how versatile Kyle Hamilton was.
Now he has a very similar player in Emmanwori. The rookie is actually a little faster than Hamilton. He is still very green but he is currently playing on a defense that will allow him to develop at his own pace. Seattle has outstanding playmakers in the secondary.
Simply watching and learning from the likes of Julian Love, Coby Bryant, and Devon Witherspoon should be invaluable for a young player like Emmanwori.
Seattle has the most athletically gifted defensive backfield in the NFL. In addition to the players just named, Riq Woolen and Ty Okada are extraordinary physical talents. And none of them surpass Emmanwori, who registered a perfect 10 relative athletic score (RAS) during last year’s draft process.
Against Washington on Sunday night, Emmanwori continued to offer glimpses of where he is headed. He can blitz. He can cover in space. Best of all, he can close on receivers and make them question whether they are in the right line of work. He had six tackles on Sunday – five of them solos.
On one play, he stopped Washington’s dangerous Deebo Samuel behind the line. On another, he ran through the Commanders’ 225-pound receiver Treylon Burks.
Emmanwori is not Kyle Hamilton. Yet. But since returning to the lineup, he has an exceptional 81.6 overall grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required). When this week’s ratings are compiled, he could well be the top-rated safety in the league – ahead of the current pacesetter. That would be Kyle Hamilton.
What’s more impressive is that Emmanwori is not simply killing it as a run stopper. He does carry an elite grade against the run, but his coverage grade is almost as good. At 21 years old, Nick Emmanwori is already a complete football player.
And with a coach who knows the value of a safety who can line up virtually anywhere on the field and make plays, he figures to only get better.