The Seattle Seahawks will open their Super Bowl defense without starting safety Ty Okada, and they may have to dig into their practice squad for additional help in the secondary.
Seattle ruled Okada out of Wednesday night’s season opener against the New England Patriots with a hamstring injury, according to the team’s final injury report shared Tuesday by multiple Seahawks reporters. Safety Nick Emmanwori, who has been working his way back from ankle surgery, is questionable. Wide receiver Tory Horton is also questionable with a hamstring injury.
For Seattle, the biggest issue is not merely losing Okada for one game. It is how little margin for error the Seahawks already had at safety.
Seattle kept only three safeties — Okada, Emmanwori and Julian Love — on its initial 53-man roster. With Okada unavailable and Emmanwori not yet guaranteed to play, a position that looked thin on paper now requires an immediate adjustment before the Patriots arrive at Lumen Field.
Seahawks Could Turn to Practice Squad After Ty Okada Hamstring Injury News
Seattle prepared for this possibility.
The Seahawks currently have four safeties on their practice squad: D’Anthony Bell, Rodney Thomas II, AJ Finley and Maxen Hook. It’s reasonable that the Seahawks could use one, if not both, of their game-day practice-squad elevations on safeties.
Bell is an especially logical candidate.
Seattle brought the veteran back to its practice squad on Sept. 5, just four days before the opener. Bell spent most of the 2025 season with the Seahawks, appearing in 14 games with two starts before finishing the year with Carolina. Seattle’s official site noted when announcing his return that the club could need to use its practice-squad depth because it was carrying only three safeties on the active roster.
That concern has now materialized.
Okada had worked his way into a much larger role in Mike Macdonald’s defense after entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent. He played all 17 games last season, made 11 starts and finished with 65 tackles, six passes defensed, 1.5 sacks and an interception.
With Coby Bryant leaving in free agency and rookie Bud Clark suffering a season-ending ankle injury during the preseason, Okada entered Week 1 as a significant part of Seattle’s plans on the back end.
Now those plans have to change.
Nick Emmanwori’s Status Takes on Added Importance
Emmanwori being listed as questionable is considerably better news than an absence would be, but Seattle’s decision with the second-year defender will carry even more weight because Okada is unavailable.
Emmanwori underwent ankle surgery in July to address an issue stemming from the injury he suffered before Super Bowl LX. He passed his physical Aug. 11 after beginning training camp on the physically unable to perform list.
The Seahawks have been increasing his workload as the opener approaches. Emmanwori was limited in practice Sunday and Monday, and Macdonald said Monday that the safety had done more than previously as his return progressed.
That matters because Emmanwori is far more than a conventional deep safety in Seattle’s defense.
As a rookie, he emerged as one of Macdonald’s most versatile pieces, lining up near the line of scrimmage and handling responsibilities ranging from covering receivers and tight ends to rushing the passer and functioning like an extra linebacker. He finished his rookie season with 81 tackles, nine tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, 11 passes defensed and an interception while finishing second in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.
If Emmanwori plays Wednesday, Seattle will still need to compensate for Okada’s absence alongside Love. If Emmanwori cannot go, the Seahawks would enter their opener without two of the three safeties they kept on the 53-man roster.
That makes Seattle’s game-day elevations — usually a minor transaction before kickoff — one of the more consequential roster decisions left before the Patriots game.
Seattle Seahawks Announce Final Decision on Ty Okada for Patriots Game