The Seahawks are back from their bye, and Devon Witherspoon is coming back.
To a different role?
Witherspoon has missed five games with a bruised knee ligament. Coach Mike Macdonald said last week his team expects Witherspoon to return to practice this week. He was not on the field at the start of practice briefly open to the media Monday, six days before Seattle (5-2) plays at the Washington Commanders.
From last season into the start of this one, Witherspoon, the two-time Pro Bowl cornerback, has been Macdonald’s primary nickel, slot cover man when the Seahawks go to five defensive backs. That’s been roughly two-thirds of the time. So Witherspoon’s essentially been the starter at nickel. Riq Woolen and Josh Jobe have been outside him as the wide cornerbacks.
This season, Witherspoon played in only two of the first seven games. He and rookie safety Nick Emmanwori got hurt in the opening game Sept. 7 against San Francisco. The four snaps they played together in Week 1 remain the only time Seattle’s starting defensive secondary has played together this season.
Emmanwori missed three games with a high-ankle sprain. That’s three times as many games as the 21-year-old from Irmo High School in Lexington County, South Carolina, had missed before in his football life.
In the three games the second-round draft choice has played since his injury, and the three more games Witherspoon has been out, Emmanwori has excelled — mostly as Seattle’s primary nickel.
Initially, Derion Kendrick got some time as the third-cornerback nickel with Witherspoon out. But recently, Emmanwori has been too good to take off the field. The rookie has played 95% and 93% of Seattle’s defensive snaps the last two games. Those have been the team’s wins at Jacksonville and last week over Houston, in which they’ve mostly controlled the opposing offenses.
“I’m just excited to show face,” Emmanwori said.
“This is a restart. So this is, officially, my second debut.”
He’s been Seattle’s most consistent, solid tackler on a defense that’s had issues with bringing ball carriers to the ground. As is the case with most slot nickels, Emmawori’s surest tackles have been in space.
Nickel DBs inside operate in open field, particularly when in zone coverage and particularly because Seattle, with what’s been a standout defensive line, is number one in the NFL in rushing defense so far (allowing 75.7 yards per game).
“If they can’t run the ball up in the middle, they throw it outside. And you need to have answers for that, as well,” Macdonald said, talking again about Emmanwori. “You saw that in his college tape.
“I’ll tell him: He can still get better. He could be more decisive.
“And it should be really hard to block him out in space.”
It is. The difference in Emmanwori’s tackles immediately after catches have been the difference between 5-yard passes staying 5-yard gains or turning into 15-yard first downs. That, in turn, often has been the difference between opponents punting and continuing drives to points.
That wins games.
Early in his NFL career, Emmanwori wins games.
“Nick’s shown that he’s an every-down nickel, that (he) can play and helps us,” Macdonald said. “So, we’re great on the perimeter, on the blitz game.
“I think he’s still improving…He’s been great in man(-coverage) situations and in our (zone) coverages, as well. He’s been disciplined. He’s looking at the right stuff. He’s working at it every day. It matters to him.
“He’s been an asset for us,” the head coach and defensive architect said, “and he’s going to keep getting better. If he keeps the attitude he has, he’s going to keep improving, which is awesome.”
Macdonald says now Emmanwori as Seattle’s primary nickel back “was a big part of our vision for him, yeah,” when Seattle traded up 17 spots to the top of round two to get him from the University of South Carolina this spring.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Emmanwori is fulfilling what Macdonald pronounced the night the Seahawks drafted him: He would be like Kyle Hamilton was in Macdonald’s Baltimore Ravens defense two and three years ago, a do-it-all. Safety. Nickel. Outside linebacker. Coverage DB. Blitzer. Run-stopper.
“I’ve felt comfortable, man,” Emmanwori said.
“Felt smooth. Felt fast. Felt physical. I’m still kinda cravin’ that taste.”
That raises the question: Now that they will be back playing together for the first time since the fifth play of the season, will it be Emmanwori or Witherspoon as the primary nickel Sunday night just outside Washington, D.C., when the Seahawks (5-2) come off their bye to play at the Commanders (3-4 entering their game Monday night at Kansas City)?
“Well,” Macdonald said, “that’s something we’ve got to figure out, how to play our guys — which is a good problem to have.”
It would seem to be unwise to move the rookie away from where he’s been excellent, from where he was stellar in college, too. Emmanwori staying as the primary nickel as a third safety at Washington Sunday night would mean Witherspoon would be outside at cornerback. That would likely be with Jobe. Woolen presumably would be the odd man out of the starting lineup if Emmanwori remains the primary nickel and Witherspoon stays outside at cornerback upon his return. Or they could go to more dime than they have, with six defensive backs, playing both Emmanwori and Woolen at the same time, with Ernest Jones as the only off-the-ball linebacker.
Emmanwori’s comfort with nickel is interesting because it is new. In college, South Carolina similarly had him in multiple roles as a run-stopper, coverage guy and blitzer of the quarterback. But he did it from further back, deeper in the Gamecocks’ secondary, back in a conventional alignment before the snap.
“He was mostly at safety, playing in the deep area of the field,” Macdonald said following the Seahawks’ practice Monday. “He was blitzing and coming ‘out of the roof.’ And they did some good stuff on defense. So, you’re able to see him do the things like cover man-to-man, blitz, and play the deep area of the field.
“But this role’s a little different than how they had him playing at South Carolina.” Robbie Ouzts back
“Welcome back!”
That was how multiple teammates greeted Robbie Ouzts as the rookie fullback walked onto the field to start practice Monday.
Ouzts was back on the field with his buddies for the first time since Sept. 21, when he played in the week-three game against New Orleans. The team designated the fifth-round draft pick from Alabama to return to practice off injured reserve Monday.
Ouzts has missed the last four games with an injured ankle.
The Seahawks’ rushing offense has suffered without the 275-pound Ouzts lead blocking in I formation for tailbacks Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. Seattle is running 49% of the time, the most in the NFL. Yet the Seahawks are 31st in the 32-team league at 3.7 yards per carry.
Brady Russell, the team’s special-teams mainstay, has been filling in at fullback. But offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak has used I formation and two-back sets less than planned without Ouzts.
Seattle has used ‘21 personnel’ — two running backs, one tight end — 11.6% of the time this season. That’s behind Miami and San Francisco for most often in the league. Seattle has been in ‘22 personnel— two backs, two tight ends — on 10.3% of snaps.
“Yeah, it’s great,” Macdonald said of Ouzts’ return. “It wasn’t a long practice, but got some good reps in. …
“We’ve majored in 12 personnel, 13 personnel,” the coach said of one-back formations without Ouzts.
“We’ll see how the game plan shakes out, but Robbie provides more two-back flexibility than probably we’ve had.”
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