When the Seattle Seahawks traded two picks for the right to select safety Nick Emmanwori 35th overall in the 2025 NFL draft, they did so with the expectation of acquiring a playmaker at every level of their defense, and the rookie isn’t disappointing, helping the unit lead the league with a “pretty ridiculous” number in a key area.
Analysis from Doug Farrar of Athlon Sports shows head coach “Mike Macdonald’s crew has sent a defensive back on 51 blitzes this season with 43 pressures – that’s a 75.9% pressure rate, which is pretty ridiculous.”
It’s “the highest rate of success with defensive back blitzes” in the NFL, according to Farrar, who explained, “Seattle’s primary free hitter is rookie safety Nick Emmanwori, who’s starting to look a bit like Macdonald’s new version of Kyle Hamilton, who Macdonald had when he was the Baltimore Ravens’ defensive coordinator.”
The comparison to Hamilton, the highest-paid safety in NFL history, is nothing new for Emmanwori. Yet, being used as a “free hitter” is a wrinkle the Seahawks have employed to turn the former South Carolina star into a legitimate candidate to be named Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Seahawks’ Freedom Plan Working for Nick Emmanwori
What Farrar dubbed “free hitters” are blitzing defenders who get to quarterbacks untouched. He cited these numbers from “Per Sumer Sports, defensive coordinators blitzed defensive backs on 0.53% of their snaps in 2022, 0.59% in 2023, 0.60% in 2024, and they’ve done so 0.61% of the time through Week 11 of the 2025 season.”
Although Farrar published his article on November 17, the Seahawks continued to use Emmanwori as a pocket-collapsing weapon in Week 12. He blitzed six times during the 30-24 win over the Tennessee Titans on the road, per Pro Football Reference.
The busy workload on the blitz makes sense because the concept of “free hitters” is a perfect match of scheme and personnel for the Seahawks. Macdonald loves to design sophisticated pressures to fool quarterbacks, mess with protection and send rushers from multiple angles.
Meanwhile, Emmanwori has the ideal multi-faceted skill-set for attacking from different levels. He’s blitzing from deep, the slot and the linebacker level.
Emmanwori, for all the blitzing, has collected just half a sack during his debut campaign, but his contribution to how the Seahawks generate pressure sums up the collective approach behind one of football’s toughest and most elaborate defenses.
Seattle Defense Clicking at All Levels
Emmanwori is contributing in multiple ways, but he’s just one part of a unit ferocious and capable at all three levels. The defensive line is deep and dominant, powered by an interior mauler who’s one of Macdonald’s favorites.
There’s also a variety of gifted athletes on the edges, where Uchenna Nwosu and DeMarcus Lawrence are still disruptive. Things are just as strong at linebacker, where Ernest Jones IV acts as a vocal and cerebral on-field signal-caller.
Having Devon Witherspoon back at corner ensures more accountability and helps the strength of the Seahawks’ defense extend to the perimeter. There is talent everywhere, but multiplicity is the key to what Macdonald’s group is doing each week, with Emmanwori the best example of a hybrid rover for a hybrid scheme.
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