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Nick Emmanwori: "I Can Make An Impact As A Rookie" · Seahawks Press Pass

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: How was it out there today? It was good man.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Uh first day things were not too fast, but you know,
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: I was just feeling my uh way around. How much
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: did they throw out? Yeah the first day, Uh to
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: try to digest. Yeah, they they threw a little bit
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: at me. I was playing like a little bit of
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: every position. But uh, you know it ain't h you know,
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Secon football is football. So I was out there just
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: playing fast, competing and stuff.
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: How how do you end up, uh getting the number three?
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: Obviously that numbers has a history here, so yeah, man,
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  Speaker 1: it was uh Russell Wilson World last so and I
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: kind of was looking for single digits. Uh, seven wasn't available,
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: so I was looking at the next, you know number
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: that you know could mean something to me. But Russell
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: Wilson was one of my favorite quarterbacks, you know, growing
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: up with at least to boom defense. You know, you
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: got a offense too. So respect to Russell, Uh, you know,
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  Speaker 1: he did did a lot for this organization. Uh did
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  Speaker 1: everything he could. So i'm'a do what I can and
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  Speaker 1: in this number, I make it special on defense in
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  Speaker 1: my own way.
• 0:51
  Speaker 2: So, Nick, what was that the moment when you stepped
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: on the field, was it more like I made.
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: It or like, Okay, it's it's game time. What was
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: that moment when you stepped in the practice yield? Oh? Yeah,
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: it all that I made. This stuff kind of ended
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: like the day after I got drafted, you know, maybe
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: two days after that right now. You know, before I
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: even got up here, I was already it's go time. Run.
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: I'm ready, you know, so ready to lock in, ready
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: to get going. All these first cold days in the NFL.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: Compared to say, when you start went to South Carolina,
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: what's it been like in terms of everything.
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: The team's asking to deal and then speed at the
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: practice and and things like that. Uh, just like how
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: it was when I transitioned from high school to uh college,
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: from college to the NFL. Things are a little bit more detailed,
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: a little bit more fast paced, but they're you know,
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: taking things slow, you know, Ricky meedic camp, trying to think,
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: take things one step at a time.
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  Speaker 2: So, Nick, I saw Mike McDonald talking to you a
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: little bit about alignment and stuff.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: Where are you guys going over in practice today? Oh,
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: just making sure I was in the right alignment, you know,
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: first day of practice. You know, you can watch all
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: the film you want or you know, get every every note.
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: You can take down every note you want, watching to
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  Speaker 1: see it on a big board or whatever. But once
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: you get out there in the field, it's a little
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: bit different. So just make sure I was in the
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: right spot, the right alignment and reading my key. So
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: he he's been making sure i'man. I make sure I'm
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: just reading my keys, going through my progressions and you know,
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: looking at making it look good out there.
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: So and then that you're actually telling some of your
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: other teammates how.
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: Much as that part of who.
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: You are, bringing it back to the back game together.
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: So then I I saw that after Mike McDonald talked
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: to you, you also telling your teammates U kind of helping
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: them way to line up. Yeah, can you just talk
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: about your leadership and your ready what you were doing?
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: Oh yeah, for sure, you know coming in just wanna
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: be you know, a better leader, you know, I said
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: Carolina m especially my last year had a great defense,
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: So I wanna bring that feeling back, you know, bring
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: it up to Seattle. Even tho I'm a rookie, I
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: can make an impact. That's a rookie, you know, even
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: when the vets come back. So just trying to get
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  Speaker 1: us to that leadership, talking to guys, letting guys know
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  Speaker 1: what we're doing, camaraderie. Uh so we only got here
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  Speaker 1: for a couple of days, so why not, you know,
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  Speaker 1: make friends and uh get a bomb with people.
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: So you guys played uh Alabama this year? Uh in
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  Speaker 2: jail and uh you you in jail and talked about
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: that game yet now.
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  Speaker 1: We ain't talking about that game yet. Man Uh I
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: I don't know them them bad memories man so but
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: uh uh Alexander uh cornerback from LSU. We had talked
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: about the LSU. Yeah. Man, so I try to stay
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: away from all that stuff, you know, w L moving
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: on forward. So sorry, I gotta ask one more. You
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: did track dream let down at one point in that game? Right?
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah I did that, And that's funny. AKS
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: Coach Mike on my my third visit here, he was like,
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: you know, you're the only dude that uh tracked Jayler
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: Mirro down right. I was like yeah. He was like,
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: you think he knows that? I was I think I
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: mean he should. He was like, yeah, he knows you
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: you only do so it's funny. Yeah, you aksed that.
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: But yeah, how much uh nickel, if at all? Did
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: you play then? Uh? Back in college? Uh, my sophomore year,
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  Speaker 1: I I started nickel like three four, maybe three to
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: four games and uh and practice iced to rotate that
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: nickel all the time. So I'm comfortable playing at it.
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: Did did you do watch blood sing off? Here? Just uh,
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: not as much? It was more coverage in college, but uh,
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: I did get a couple of blisters to my name.
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: Uh maybe like fifteen twenty percent majority of r uh
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: was coverage. Is that something you'd like to do more
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: at the NFL level?
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: And coach McDonald, that's what the reputations defensive max?
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah, yeah for sure. You know the NFL
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: things a little bit more cleaner and cut. Uh, you
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: can rely dud a litle bit more to do their job.
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: So you know, it just gives you opportunity to make
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  Speaker 1: more plays and eat. You know, you can trust the
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: dude that's gonna if you're blessing, he's gonna come take
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: your spot, or if you're not, I'm not blessing, Uh,
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: he's gonna be in the post. So living it's a
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: lot more vets, a lot more older dudes. You know,
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: dudes can you can rely on each other. So I'm
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: excited to blitch make some more plays in the backfield.
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: What what did it mean to you the way Seattle
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: kind of moved up to get you?
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: After after that night, I meant a lot. Man just
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: uh showed home mistate they they wanted me, honestly. Uh So,
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: after that first round had ended, I was kind of
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: confused about like where I was in the land. Cause
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: sometimes you know, you got an idea, uh, but I
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: was kind of like I wasn't sure where I was
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: gonna be at. Uh. So I was looking at the teams.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: I think it was like Cleveland, Tennessee. A lot of
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: teams were lined up, but I knew Seattle was like
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: pick eighteen. So I was like, Seattle's out the picture maybe.
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: And then so when I got the phone calls, kind
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: of confused on like who was really calling cause I
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: was seeing a different team on the clock. And then
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: when they called, I was kind of like trying to
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: put two and two together. But until he told me
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: like on the phone, like, uh, We're trading up to
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: get you, and I was like, Okay, it makes sense.
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: So I'm pretty excited, super stoked out, Uh. I know,
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: the whole staff are super excited to come get me,
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: uh r, really pumped up. So it just meant a lot.
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: Uh What was the way of emotions like where you
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: go from, like you said, confusion, probably wanted to get
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: a Day one pick and then all of a sudden being.
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: Off the board. Just what's the roller coaster like like that? Honestly,
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: many you know I I the draft, You never really
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: know it was like until you go through it. So
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: like even like when the first pick starts in the
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: first round, it's like you still kind of getting nervous,
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: you know, even though you're not really projected to go there.
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  Speaker 1: So it's like the the clocks is the clock is
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: ticking and everyone's getting their call. You just keep looking
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: at your phone like I wonder if you're gonna get
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: that call. Wonder if youre gonna get that call. And
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: then when it gets close, like the crunch time, you know,
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: last five picks in the first round, it's starting to
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: really settle in, like you know, you waiting for that call,
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  Speaker 1: but you know the calling end up coming. So my
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: mom was just kind of all over the place. But
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: I realized, you know, I was gonna go early in
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: day two, So you know, I just took it. As
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: you know, I'm gonna shoulder Uh the rest of the
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: teams that passed on me. Uh, I can't wait to
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: show on which type player I am and just make
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: them regret it. You know, every year in the NFL draft,
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: looking forward or or looking back in hindsight, it's always
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: that one player like, oh, how did he fall in
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: this round? Or what happened with you know, so just
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: you know, ready to show my market in the NFL.
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: What is your impression in Seattle? Your first U practice here?
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: Beautiful? Honestly, I never really seen like a practice environment
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  Speaker 1: like you know, got the the the what is that
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: the lake? Yeah, got the lake view right on the side.
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: You know, weather ain't too crazy. I ain't seen nothing
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: of the crazy. Whether they say it rains out here
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: or something. So the weather been good. It's beautiful out here.
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: So you talk to camp after you get drafted, I did, uh.
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: Cam Chanceller actually before he even got drafted, at first night,
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: he had texted me. He had sent me a message
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: like out the blue was like, hey man, you know,
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: wherever you end up, we go ground hard. Just a
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: little heartfelt message and that was one of my you know,
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: favorite safeties again growing up. So I was sawing my
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: brothers and like, oh, Cam Chancellor just woo woo. So
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: when I got drafted by Seattle, I I I I
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: thought him texting me was like maybe he had the inside,
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: Like Okay, I'm going to Seattle. But after I got drafted,
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: he told me he was like, look at God, man,
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: what a coincidence. So just uh, camp Chester here a
• 6:52
  Speaker 1: great dude. Man, I'm go'a be reaching out to him
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: for advice. You know how he made his way through here.
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  Speaker 1: Trying to make my own way.
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: When you get people talking Derwins, James, Cam Chancer, Kyle Hamilton,
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: do you like those expectations you kind of want to
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: make your own your own way.
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: Honestly, I'm not I love those expectations, but of course
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: I'm gonna make my own imprint on the league. I
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: think I bring a different skill set than every one
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: of those guys. But I mean those are great, great
• 7:16
  Speaker 1: people to be compared to, especially during James Kyle Hampton. Uh,
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: those you know, those dudes I watch the most as
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: far as like film, and both of those dudes are
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: kind of like, I'll reach out to those dudes try
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: to get some information from them. So just excited to
• 7:27
  Speaker 1: make my market in the NFL. Alright, yeah, I appreciate
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: you guys. Man,