One of the most unique aspects of Super Bowl Week is there are no secrets.
Members of the media are everywhere, nowadays with phones in hand. The prominent players and coaches hit the podium for press conferences daily from Opening Night through Friday.
Perhaps the biggest difference of all is the designated pool reporter assigned to each practice. That reporter's job is to summarize the team’s full workout. Specific plays and scheme-related elements are obviously kept in-house, but injuries and practice participation? That’s all fair game.
The New England Patriots got good news on that front when it comes to Drake Maye’s banged-up throwing shoulder. Lindsay Jones reported that Maye not only practiced in full on Wednesday, but took every first-team rep. That’s a good sign that Maye, after taking most of last week off, will be about as close to 100 percent as possible entering his 21st game of the season.
The Seattle Seahawks? They got bad news on Wednesday. Seattle pool reporter Kalyn Kahler revealed that starting safety Nick Emmanwori, the No. 35 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, exited Wednesday's practice with an ankle injury.
He was able to leave the field under his own power, but the first big break of the week might’ve just gone New England’s way.
Super Bowl injury scare hits Seahawks defense at worst possible time
Safety play is part of the heartbeat of Mike Macdonald’s defense, which aligns most often in a zone with a two-high shell. The Seahawks often have three safeties on the field — Cody Bryant, Emmanwori, and Ty Okada were all top 10 on the team in defensive snaps, with Bryant No. 1 — keeping eyes on the quarterback and attacking downhill behind a stout front that generates a ton of pressure on its own.
Emmanwori has been good all season, but he might’ve played the best game of his career in the NFC Championship. Pro Football Focus believes so, at least, charting him with two run stuffs, three pass breakups, and a 47.9 passer rating on five targets in the win over Matthew Stafford and company.
The early indications on Emmanwori is that he suffered a low ankle sprain, which could give him a chance to play in the Super Bowl with three-plus days of rest. But will the difference-maker who’s started every game for Seattle since Week 11 be close to 100 percent? That feels highly questionable at this point.
“The rookie safety injured his ankle while defending a pass late in practice,” Kahler reported. “He walked off the field on his own shortly before 4 p.m. Several players and coaches went over to comfort him before he left.”
Video of Emmanwori limping into the team hotel on Wednesday night has been circulating around social media, but per the internet doctors, that’s a good sign for Seattle. Had Emmanwori been seen wearing a walking boot, that would indicate a high-ankle sprain and essentially eliminate any chance of him playing on Sunday.
Nick Emmanwori injury update
— Jesse Morse, M.D. (@DrJesseMorse) February 5, 2026
Here’s a video of him reportedly entering the hotel with a significant limp.
He suffered a right high-ankle sprain in Week 1 and missed the next 3 games.
Upon further review this appears to be a new injury to his right ankle, not an exact… https://t.co/Klb196I55W
Seattle figures to spin the dial on defense with an assortment of challenging looks for Maye, including Cover 6, which has been the Patriots’ kryptonite since Sean McDermott and the Bills deployed that coverage scheme at a high rate in Week 15.
Maye has excelled against heavy zone defenses this year, however. Per Sharp Football Analysis, Seattle's zone rate of 80.4 percent of plays was the third highest in football.
That means any dent in Seattle’s elite coverage unit on the backend would be advantage Patriots on Super Sunday.