The Seattle Seahawks’ 2025 NFL draft class proved so dominant in Sunday’s 38-14 win over the Washington Commanders that defensive back Nick Emmanwori decided to give it a name — Rookie Takeover.
Emmanwori said those words as he left the field with fellow rookie receiver Tory Horton, the two mugging happily for a camera from a member of the Seahawks’ social-media team, an interaction shared on the team’s official X page.
“Hey, rookie takeover, though,” Emmanwori said. “Rookie takeover.”
The sentiment was hard to argue.
Rookies scored three of the Seahawks’ five touchdowns — two by Horton and another by tight end Elijah Arroyo.
Emmanwori had six tackles and one of the game’s highlight defensive plays, when he plowed through a block from receiver Treylon Burks to bring down Deebo Samuel with one arm for a 1-yard loss on a screen pass.
Another rookie, Connor O’Toole, recovered a fumble on a kickoff that set up the third TD of the night and a quick 21-0 lead — the first fumble recovery of the season for the Seahawks.
And left guard Grey Zabel helped lead an offensive line that didn’t allow Sam Darnold to get sacked once.
In all, nine rookies played 217 snaps on offense or defense and another 41 on special teams.
“The guys are doing a great job,” coach Mike Macdonald said this week of the rookie class.
Asked about the “rookie takeover” comment, Macdonald said wryly: “I’ll tell them ‘Easy there, tiger. We’ve got a lot of work to do.’”
Indeed, eight games does not a season make.
“Pretty sure they’re not giving up playoff slots after Week 9,” Macdonald said. “So we have a lot more work to do.”
Sunday’s rookie output was heartening to those who remember how some of the teams early in the Pete Carroll era tended to get better as the year wore on, often powered by increasing contributions from rookies.
“It’s great for them,” Macdonald said. “They’re going to play good football, be productive and help the team as well.”
With eight games down and nine to go, let’s review the season so for each draft pick and other rookies on the 53-man roster.
G Grey Zabel
Pick: 18th overall
Snaps played: 476.
Comment: Zabel has played all but three offensive snaps this season and continues to emerge as one of the best rookie offensive linemen. Pro Football Focus gave him his best pass-blocking grade of the season against the Commanders, noting he was beaten only once in 27 pass-blocking snaps. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, “Zabel has not allowed a sack this season and has the sixth-lowest QB pressure percentage allowed (3.5%) among all offensive linemen.’’
DB Nick Emmanwori
Pick: 35th overall
Snaps: 243.
Comment: Emmanwori has been everything the Seahawks hoped for since recovering from a sprained ankle that held him out for three games. He has the eighth-highest grade of all rookies this week from Pro Football Focus. PFF, which lists Emmanwori as a cornerback since he is essentially a full-time nickel, wrote this week that he “ranks fourth among all cornerbacks in PFF run-defense grade (81.9). The second-round pick also ranks eighth in zone PFF coverage grade (81.2), holding quarterbacks to an 85.6 NFL passer rating when targeted in those looks.”
TE Elijah Arroyo
Pick: 50th overall
Snaps: 206.
Comment: Arroyo has played from 30-54% of snaps in every game this season in serving as the backup to AJ Barner, also often on the field in multiple tight end sets. Arroyo ranks 46th of 79 tight ends overall from PFF but has the 34th-best run-blocking grade. Of his snaps, 139 have come inline. He is tied for fourth on the team in receptions with 13, good for 169 yards, and got his first TD against Washington.
QB Jalen Milroe
Pick: 92nd
Snaps: 3.
Comment: Milroe has played in just three games, with one snap in each. He has not played since a pitch on an option play resulted in a fumble against Tampa Bay on Oct. 5. He has been on the inactive list, serving as the emergency third quarterback, in the three games since.
DE Rylie Mills
Pick: 142nd
Snaps: 0.
Comment: The former Notre Dame star remains on the non-football injury list while recovering from an ACL injury. The next step for him would be to be designated as returning to practice, at which point he could practice for 21 days and the team would have to activate him to the 53-man roster or place on injured reserve for the rest of the season.
WR Tory Horton
Pick: 166th
Snaps: 226.
Comment: With Cooper Kupp sidelined, Horton saw his most playing time last week with 37 snaps, 72%. He responded with two touchdowns and four receptions, each career highs. He has 13 receptions for 161 yards and a team-high five TDs. He has been the primary punt returner with nine returns for 239 yards, averaging 14.9 per attempt, keyed by a 95-yard return for a TD against the Saints in Week 3. His playing time could fluctuate with the addition of Rashid Shaheed. But Horton has undoubtedly forged himself a significant role with the Seahawks for the long term.
FB Robbie Ouzts
Pick: 175th
Snaps: 73.
Comment: Ouzts returned against Washington after missing four games with an ankle injury. Of his snaps, 49 have come on running plays when he’s been asked to block. He has not had any carries or receptions.
OL Bryce Cabeldue
Pick: 192nd
Snaps: 7.
Comment: Cabeldue has been active for every game and has played in three, getting mop-up duty in the blowouts against the Saints and Commanders, with three snaps at left guard and four at right guard. He saw action on special teams against the Steelers. He is also the third-team center on gamedays.
OL Mason Richman
Pick: 234th
Snaps: 1.
Comment: Richman was active for the games against Tampa Bay and Jacksonville, adding depth at guard and tackle when veteran Josh Jones was sidelined. Richman played one snap against the Bucs and saw time on special teams in each game.
WR Ricky White III
Pick: 238th
Snaps: 7.
Comment: White is on the practice squad and was not active for a game until Sunday against the Commanders, when he served as the fourth receiver with Kupp, Jake Bobo and Dareke Young out. He got seven snaps on offense but did not record a stat while also getting five snaps on special teams.
Undrafted rookies
The Seahawks have gotten snaps from five undrafted rookie free agents — linebacker Connor O’Toole (21), linebacker Jared Ivey (15), tight end Nick Kallerup (11), running back Jacardia Wright (five) and offensive tackle Amari Kight (two).
O’Toole recovered a fumble on a kickoff return against Washington to set up a Darnold to Horton TD that made it 21-0 in the second quarter.
That’s 14 rookies — 11 of whom are on the 53-man roster — who have played a combined 1,289 offensive or defensive snaps.
According to a chart this week from SFdata9ers, the Seahawks are getting 11.4% of their snaps from rookies, the 14th-highest percentage in the NFL (Cleveland is getting the most at 20.9%, the L.A. Rams the fewest at 3.9%.)
Maybe not quite a rookie takeover, but a good start, to be sure.