General manager John Schneider used to seemingly make a bunch of trades every year in the NFL draft. This included many first-round moves that had Seattle trading back and then taking a risk. Many of those deals occurred in the 2010s, when Seattle had a talented roster and Schneider felt it was safe to experiment a bit in the draft.
The Seahawks no longer have as much talent and are no longer a perennial championship contender. Maybe the team will get back to that in a couple of years, but not yet. That does not mean that Schneider is unafraid of shaking things up a bit, however.
He proved this by trading up in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft. The deal involves Seattle getting the 35th pick from the Tennessee Titans, and then Seattle used that to select safety Nick Emmanwori.
Seattle Seahawks trade up in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft to draft dream prospect
Clearly, Seattle saw a need that only Nick Emmanwori would fill. Seattle had four Day 2 choices, so expecting Schneider to do nothing made little sense. This is especially true, as Emmanwori is the closest thing to a modern Kam Chancellor in the last decade. The safety is 6'3" and 220 pounds, with speed and the ability to play the run exceptionally well.
What he needs to work on is his spacing in coverage. Some pundits see him as a bit like Jamal Adams, who was thunderous against the run and attacking opposing quarterbacks, but was iffy in deep coverage. Of course, as Emmanwori is closer to Chancellor than Adams, then he will probably play closer to the line of scrimmage while a free safety patrols the deep.
He is athletic and impactful. He will get immediate reps. By 2026, the big and speedy safety could be helping turn Seattle's defense into the Legion of Boom 2.0.
In return for gaining the number 35 choice, Seattle gave the Tennessee Titans the numbers 52 and 82 choices. Seattle still has picks 50 and 92 on Day 2.