Rising to Moment, Nick Emmanwori Delivers ‘Helluva Plays’ as Seahawks Clinch Super Bowl Berth
SEATTLE, Wash. - Regardless of how many snaps a rookie plays during his first NFL regular season, when the lights come on in the playoffs, the stage can be far too bright for wide-eyed first-year players in a win or go home scenario.
Long before joining the Seattle Seahawks via trade midway through the 2024 season, Ernest Jones learned that lesson the hard way with the Los Angeles Rams. After missing his team’s first two postseason games with a high ankle sprain on injured reserve, he was activated just in time for the NFC Championship Game and thrown back into the starting lineup, immediately feeling the mounting pressure with a spot in the Super Bowl hanging in the balance.
In that first playoff game, while the Rams eked out a 20-17 win over the 49ers to advance to the big game, a tentative Jones finished with just two tackles on 22 defensive snaps, failing to make near as many plays as he had during the regular season returning to game action for the first time in a month.
“I’m out there with A.D. [Aaron Donald], a bunch of guys who were legends, and I just didn’t want to mess it up,” Jones recalled. “And I was playing timid, playing scared.”
But Jones grew from that underwhelming performance by playing with a more aggressive, confident mindset two weeks later, recording seven tackles and a sack to help the Rams beat the Bengals and hoist the Lombardi Trophy at SoFi Stadium. Four years later, now donning a Seahawks uniform with the same stakes at play, the 26-year-old linebacker came full circle with those lessons not only helping him play at his very best as a now savvy veteran, but providing invaluable guidance for several of his young teammates.
With a shot to earn a second trip to the Super Bowl in just his fifth season, Jones made it a priority before the playoffs started to lend his expertise as a rookie thrust into high-pressure playoff games to do-it-all safety Nick Emmanwori, hoping to help the versatile young playmaker avoid playing cautious and making the moment bigger than it needed to be.
Now set to make a return trip to Santa Clara in two weeks after dispatching the aforementioned Rams 31-27 in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday night, it’s safe to say Emmanwori took Jones’ words of encouragement to heart. And he helped his teammate enact a bit of sweet revenge on his former team in the process.
“I told Nick to be the reason why we go win, and Nick made some helluva plays tonight,” Jones said proudly while puffing on a celebratory cigar. “To do it, to go through that team, and to do what we did today, I’m just thankful.”
As he has done throughout his stellar rookie campaign, the blazing fast 6-3 Emmanwori starred once again in front of a national audience, playing a violent, electric brand of football defending the run with six tackles and two run stops. On a night where Matthew Stafford threw for over 370 yards and three touchdowns, he also came through as the most reliable bright spot for Mike Macdonald’s defense in coverage with three critical pass breakups to key the victory.
Helping limit Los Angeles to a Harrison Mevis field goal early in the second quarter, Emmanwori followed up stuffing running back Kyren Williams for no gain on second down by playing superb man coverage against receiver Davante Adams over the middle, reaching in front of the wideout on a crossing route for a third down deflection.
But Emmanwori’s two most important pass breakups came on consecutive plays in what proved to be a pivotal turning point in the contest late in the quarter. After the Rams scored a nine-yard touchdown on a pass from Stafford to Williams to take their first lead at 13-10 inside two minutes to play in the first half, the Seahawks endured a brutal offensive possession gaining just two yards on three plays, as two Sam Darnold incompletions brought Michael Dickson onto the field to punt with 1:44 still on the clock, giving the visitors a prime opportunity to add to their lead.
With momentum building on the visiting sideline, Emmanwori took advantage of his remarkable combination of speed and length for a defensive back on successive pass plays. On 2nd and 5, he quickly rocketed out of his backpedal on a Cover 1 robber look in man coverage and broke on an out route to Puka Nacua like a hawk in pursuit, extending his long wings to knock the pass away. For an encore, with Macdonald dialing up a Cover 6 look and the safety in a curl responsibility on the quarters side of the call, he again undercut an out-breaking route, this time deflecting a throw to running back Blake Corum in the flats to force a punt.
Making it look way too easy for a safety/cornerback hybrid built like a linebacker, Emmanwori’s efforts granted Seattle’s offense once more shot to do damage before the half, and Darnold capitalized fully on the opportunity. After hitting Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 42-yard completion on a skinny post, he floated a perfect strike to his star receiver two plays later to put the Seahawks back out in front 17-13, ensuring the home team would have the lead at the break.
“I thought Nick played a great game,” Macdonald said afterward. “A lot of plays on the ball. We're asking him to do a lot of stuff, playing near the line of scrimmage, playing both DB spots. That was awesome.”
In the second half, Emmanwori didn’t generate any additional pass breakups and unfortunately, two of his best plays in the second half wound up not counting. A vicious tackle on tight end Colby Parkinson for only a two-yard gain on a short pass play in the third quarter didn’t count due to holding in the secondary against cornerback Riq Woolen and a one-yard tackle for loss on Corum later in the final quarter also was negated by an offsides penalty on edge rusher Boye Mafe.
But despite the lack of statistics, Emmanwori continued to make his presence felt playing outstanding coverage against slot receivers, tight ends, and running backs. He held up well on a decisive red zone third down late in the fourth quarter, taking away a throwing lane over the middle for Stafford and leading to an endzone pass breakup by cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who then knocked away the ensuing fourth down pass to send the Rams off the field empty handed.
By the time the confetti started to fall on the Lumen Field turf moments later, Emmanwori had been targeted by Stafford five times and allowed just two completions for eight yards and four yards per reception, limiting the likely MVP to a 47.2 passer rating when challenging him. Along with Jones being proud of his young pupil, safety Julian Love expressed similar pride with the playful nature of an older brother after the game, not surprised to see the rookie continue to acquit himself as a dynamic cog in the NFL’s No. 1 defense in a playoff setting.
“I think he's approached all this with a lot of humility,” Love commented, cracking a smile. “I think he is constantly open to coaching feedback, any advice from me or any of the leaders. He carries a chip on his shoulder. He has swag. He's fiery. But he's a humble one. And so in that moment, we're excited. He's making some good plays because he's been making plays for us the entire season.”
Going up against the Patriots in two weeks, Emmanwori will once again be tested on numerous fronts while playing numerous positions in Macdonald’s defense. For one, his speed and tackling ability will be important to the task of trying to contain quarterback Drake Maye’s running and scrambling talents. He also will have to deal with quality tight ends in coverage, including Hunter Henry, who tallied 768 yards and seven receiving touchdowns this season as one of Maye’s top targets, while Treveyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson present complementary challenges as runners out of the backfield.
But if this season, and the past two weeks in particular, have been any indication, Emmanwori won’t be playing timid or scared for the Seahawks. There’s a quiet confidence to him coupled with a ferocious playing style and a relentless desire to constantly improve, a combination of traits that paired with his rare size and athleticism have given him as close to untapped potential as can be found in the NFL.
With the Lombardi Trophy now just four quarters away from being in reach, if the Seahawks ultimately get it done at Levis Stadium, there’s a good - if not inevitable - chance Emmanwori will have played an essential role. And if that happens, be ready for Jones to be filled with even more joy and admiration for his understudy following in his footsteps with another victory cigar in tow.
