SAN JOSE, Calif. — Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said Thursday that he “fully expects” rookie nickelback Nick Emmanwori to play in Super Bowl LX despite an injury scare with his ankle.
Macdonald said Emmanwori suffered a low ankle sprain when he rolled it late in practice Wednesday. The coach wasn’t sure how much, if at all, he’d practice Thursday afternoon.
“But he’s doing great,” Macdonald said. “Moving around. Just got to make sure we handle it the right way. Probably going to be overcareful and overcautious at this point to make sure we’re rolling going into the weekend.”
The Seahawks play the New England Patriots on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.
According to the pool report from ESPN’s Kalyn Kahler, players and coaches went over to Emmanwori after he went down Wednesday before walked off the field on his own power.
“It kind of caught me off guard,” Emmanwori said Thursday. “The practice wasn’t nothing crazy or nothing, we weren’t going hard out there. But I just rolled it. I’ll be good to go for Sunday, so I’m looking forward to that.”
Emmanwori, a second-round pick out of South Carolina, injured the same ankle on the first series of the Seahawks’ season opener, sidelining him for the rest of that game and the next three. After his return, he emerged as a difference-maker while playing virtually every snap and moving all around Macdonald’s defense.
Emmanwori, a finalist for AP Defensive Rookie of the Year, said this ankle injury didn’t feel as severe initially as the one from the opener, noting that he was able to walk off on his own.
“Nobody really wants to get hurt or banged up during the Super Bowl week or any week at that,” he said. “So, it just kind of caught me off guard. It was just a little scare. But imaging came back … We’ve got a good plan to go for Sunday, so I’ll be fine. I’ll be good.
The AP Defensive Rookie of the Year will be announced Thursday evening at the NFL Honors show. The other finalists are New York Giants outside linebacker Abdul Carter, Atlanta Falcons defensive end James Pearce Jr., Cleveland Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger and Falcons safety Xavier Watts.
“For an individual award, that would be huge to add to my young career,” Emmanwori said. “But right now … I think a Super Bowl ring would be way better.”
