It didn't take very long for the Seattle Seahawks to make a big splash on Day 2 of the 2025 NFL Draft, as they moved up from the middle portion of the second round to land the No. 35 overall pick and select South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori following a surprising fall out of Round 1.
Emmanwori is a great value pick with an incredibly high floor in the NFL. His potential is clearly that of a multiple-time Pro Bowler, which could get Seahawks fans dreaming of the days when another giant safety patrolled their defensive backfield.
While many will compare Emmanwori to Baltimore Ravens star Kyle Hamilton due to their similar build and role within Mike Macdonald's defense, some fans are setting expectations higher. There's a chance that Emmanwori, who has earned comparisons to this Seahawks legend beforehand, follows in Kam Chancellor's footsteps.
Is it any wonder that Richard Sherman himself help announce this pick? Could we be looking at Legion of Boom 2.0 alongside Devon Witherspoon and Tariq Woolen?
Seahawks drafted next Kam Chancellor in South Carolina's Nick Emmanwori
Emmanwori may not be the best prototypical coverage safety in the world, but he is a premium athlete. At 6-3 and 220 pounds, Emmanwori was timed at 4.4 even in the 40-yard dash, all while broad jumping over 11 feet and showing off an NBA-worthy 43-inch vertical jump.
Macdonald has used bigger safeties like Hamilton to great effect in Baltimore, and his defenses during his time at Michigan also leaned on similar players. Emmanwori, however, might be in a class all his own due to some truly exceptional physical gifts that Seattle can lean on early in his career.
Emmanwori will need to eventually clean up some inconsistencies in his game when he is in coverage to truly hit that Chancellor level of rarified air, but a coach like Macdonald could be the perfect leader and mentor to get the most out of him.
The fact Emmanwori made it past Seattle at No. 18 overall was a bit of a surprise. Landing him at 35 could turn Emmanwori into one of the biggest steals of the draft, a Seahawks legend in waiting, and a black stain on the resumes of general managers who decided to pass him up.