News broke late on Wednesday night that Seattle Seahawks star safety and potential Defensive Rookie of the Year award recipient Nick Emmanwori suffered an ankle injury during practice on Wednesday, clouding his availability for Sunday’s Super Bowl.

Then came video of Emmanwori heading into the team hotel, where he was favoring the ankle with a noticeable limp. However, if you ask his teammates, they are confident that he will play, which would create a nearly identical scenario to what happened in Super Bowl XLIX.

Nick Emmanwori’s injury is similar to Kam Chancellor’s in Super Bowl XLIX

The last time the New England Patriots and Seahawks played in the Super Bowl, it resulted in the famous interception at the goal line by Malcom Butler, sealing the game and the fate of the Seahawks season. What was forgotten about that game, however, is what happened to Kam Chancellor just days before the game.

In practice, Chancellor suffered a partially torn MCL and a bone bruise just two days before kickoff. He would go on to play and record double-digit tackles, which was to the surprise of no one, given that Chancellor only retired because of career debilitating neck injury.

It’s far too early to assume that Emmanwori will be anything like Chancellor, but he’s off to a good start given his rookie season in Seattle. There is one way he can follow directly in his footsteps however, which is by playing in the game.

Coby Bryant expects Nick Emmanwori to play in the Senior Bowl

No official word on Nick Emmanwori's status yet but his teammate Coby Bryant on @SeattleSports didn't steer clear of the question when asked by @TheMikeSalk if Emmanwori is going to be OK

"Yeah, yeah he's good."

— Maura Dooley (@Maura_Dool) February 5, 2026

“He had an ankle today, we brought him in to look at it, and we’ll kind of go from here and figure out what are the next steps?” Seahawks HC Mike Macdonald said on Wednesday. It will cleary be an uphill battle for Emmanwori to play, and he certainly won’t be 100 percent, but I wouldn’t bet against him.

Mike Macdonald confident Nick Emmanwori will play

Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald says S Nick Emmanwori rolled his ankle in practice yesterday, terms it a low ankle sprain. Says he'll go through walkthrough, and that'll determine how much, if at all, he'll practice today.

Says Emmanwori is confident he'll play Sunday.

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) February 5, 2026

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