Approaching the 2025 NFL Draft, we’ll be scouting as many of the top prospects that the Pittsburgh Steelers could have their eye on anywhere from Rounds 1 through 7. We’ll break down the prospects themselves, strengths and weaknesses, projected draft capital and their fit with the Steelers.

The Steelers have shown a lot of interest in the 2025 NFL Draft’s safety class this offseason. Could South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori be a surprise first-round pick for Pittsburgh?

The basics on Nick Emmanwori

Position: Safety

Class: Junior

Size: 6’3, 220 pounds

Age: 21

Projected draft round: 2

Stats via Sports Reference

Nick Emmanwori certainly wasn’t an unknown beforehand, but he became on the NFL Draft’s fastest risers following an absurdly great performance at the 2025 NFL Combine. The South Carolina safety entered the first-round conversation by posting a perfect 10.0 RAS, including a 4.38 40-yard dash at 6’3, 220 pounds.

Emmanwori’s all-around athleticism isn’t hard to find on tape. His recovery speed is one of my favorite aspects of his game — he can catch up to and break on routes in a flash to make plays on the ball and take away openings in the passing game.

You also see it on interception returns. Emmanwori is dynamic in the open field.

Despite his size, Emmanwori has the needed athleticism to succeed in any safety role in the NFL, including as a middle-of-the-field freelancer. However, he needs to continue to improve his instincts and fluidity in coverage. He’s not a “natural” per se and often takes false steps and reacts late — his speed covered those issues for the most part in college, but the NFL will be trickier.

His ball skills aren’t nonexistent with six career interceptions, but Emmanwori needs to improve at getting his head around when making plays. The clips below aren’t all bad, though — watch how quickly he’s able to peel off to cover the crosser in the first clip, and how easily he carries the receivers downfield in the last two. At the very least, he has everything it takes to succeed covering tight ends at the NFL level.

Emmanwori is still raw in coverage, but there are a lot of tools to like. As a box safety, where many expect him to land in the NFL, I came away a bit more disappointed. Still, the pure athleticism cannot be ignored:

Also, his size is an asset on must-have stops. Emmanwori has a lot more mass than your average defensive back, and it shows.

However, while Emmanwori’s effort in run support isn’t exactly a problem, he doesn’t have the ideal demeanor that you want near the line of scrimmage. Remember what made DeShon Elliott’s 2024 so memorable? He attacked every run play like he was shot out of a cannon. Not so much for Emmanwori. Again, it’s nothing horrible, but watch enough games and you’ll be missing the pop and aggressive mindset you want to see from a projected box safety.

Per PFF, he has a career missed tackle rate of just 9.7%, but he does tend to lunge a bit at times and could improve his angles in the open field.

Emmanwori is a difficult evaluation (especially without all-22), but the upside is impossible to ignore. He has such a rare size/speed combination that he could succeed in a number of roles in the pros — he even lined up in the slot at times in college and looked great. There’s a lot to love.

But in my mind, right now Emmanwori is a first-round athlete but a Day 2 safety. He could become an All-Pro, but in the wrong scheme, or without proper coaching, he could be the next miscast safety hybrid who never really “clicks” in the NFL. The Round 1 hype is understandable, but I’ll go with an early Day 2 grade.

Strengths

Elite athlete at 6’3, 220 pounds
Excellent recovery speed to pounce on routes and chase down runners
Size to succeed in the box
Baseline skill set to excel at different defensive back positions

Weaknesses

Still improving coverage feel
Lacks the ideal aggressive mentality in run support
Needs to play the ball better in tight coverage

Lance Zierlein of NFL.com

The assessment of Emmanwori’s tape could depend on which games you watch. He’s a physical specimen with rare size and outstanding speed, but he doesn’t always play with a “first to the action” mentality in run support. When he gets it cranked up, he becomes a much more effective tackler and overall run stopper from sideline to sideline. He’s capable of playing over the top, inside the box or even matching up with pass-catching tight ends. He’s upright with average transition fluidity in coverage, but he has great recovery speed and uses his length to throw a blanket over the catch point. He has rare NFL traits and talent, so a boost in urgency could take him from a good starter to a Pro Bowl-caliber player.

Keith Sanchez of The Draft Network

His versatility to align in multiple secondary positions has led to mixed results. When playing in the box, Emmanwori occasionally struggles to shed blocks and lacks consistency as a sideline-to-sideline run defender. Additionally, Emmanwori needs to refine his tackling technique. He sometimes overruns ball-carriers, takes poor angles, or misses tackles altogether. Despite these challenges, Emmanwori has the physical traits—size, length, and athleticism—to become an excellent tackler and reliable run defender. Improving the finer details of his approach to tackling will significantly elevate his performance. … Thanks to his size, length, and ball skills, Emmanwori is an exciting secondary prospect for NFL teams.

Kyle Crabbs of The 33rd Team

Emmanwori projects best as a traditional strong safety or a third safety for teams that covet the personnel flexibility to play big nickel. Emmanwori’s role as a base safety would be best unlocked in a safety role that rolls down into the box from split half shells and is more responsible for playing forward than working in a pedal. Although he becomes a probable coverage tell unless you’re willing to let him live in some tight half responsibilities. Those opportunities are likely best supplemented with strong perimeter cornerback play to allow him to stay tight to the hash and potentially hunt routes to cut across the middle of the field. Emmanwori is a developmental starter.

Emmanwori met with the Steelers for one of the team’s top-30 visits as Pittsburgh continues to hint that its first-round pick might be a position other than the defensive line. The Steelers have two very good safeties under contract for the upcoming season, but Emmanwori has the rare athleticism to develop into an elite starter himself, and in the meantime, he can contribute as fantastic depth and a possible “big nickel” alternative to Beanie Bishop Jr. and Brandin Echols in the slot.

He’d be a fun chess-piece addition to the secondary, no doubt. But Emmanwori currently lacks the instincts that make Minkah Fitzpatrick succeed as a rangy free safety, and he doesn’t bring the violent playing style that makes DeShon Elliott elite near the line of scrimmage. He has the ceiling to reach either’s level, but he’d be a risky and somewhat puzzling selection in the first round for Pittsburgh.

TL;DR: Emmanwori is a 6’3, 220-pound safety prospect with elite athleticism and sky-high upside. He shows some great speed in coverage and range in run support, but he needs to improve the finer aspects of his game to become a reliable starter in the defensive backfield.

What are your thoughts on South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori? And which draft prospects would you like to see profiled next? Let us know in the comments below!