Robert Nkemdiche elevated from the practice squad for the Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are elevating defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche from the practice squad for Sunday’s game. The Seahawks are facing off against the Tennessee Titans Sunday at 4:25 PM EST.
Nkemdiche’s early years
Nkemdiche is the former first-round pick of their divisional rival the Arizona Cardinals back in 2016. However, he was hardly in the rotation for the Cardinals in the three years he spent with the team. Out of those three years, he played in 27 of 48 possible games. And he recorded just six starts. He concluded his time in Arizona recording 26 solo tackles, 10 tackles for loss, four and a half sacks, two pass deflections two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery; which he ran back 21 yards for a touchdown.
After the Cardinals waived him in 2019 with a failed physical destination, Nkemdiche Signed with the Miami Dolphins on a one-year deal. He started the season on the physically unable to perform list (PUP) after having knee surgery in the offseason. Unfortunately, his time with the dolphins would be short-lived. He appeared in just two games for Miami and was waived by them on November 5th. He would then go on to be suspended by the league for two weeks shortly after being released
In 2020, he was unable to find work in the NFL. Nkemdiche was unable to secure a spot on any roster and subsequentially did not play a single down last season.
In the preseason
This offseason the Seattle Seahawks elected to give him my chance. During the team’s offseason workouts and preseason, Nkemdiche impressed the organization and fans of the team. Nkemdiche credited His newfound energy and work ethic to finding a newfound love for the game after sitting out the season.
Although he did receive positive reviews from the Seahawks and head coach Pete Carroll, he was ultimately one of the players cut during the Seahawks’ attempt to get down to the 53-man requirement.
Nkemdiche had the opportunity to sign elsewhere if the opportunity was available. But instead, he elected to stay in Seattle as a part of the Seahawks practice squad. Nkemdiche Developed a bond entrust with the organization, and now it appears that the trust he placed with them is going to pay off.
The Seahawks defense did pretty well in their regular-season opener against the Indianapolis Colts. The defensive line had a total of three sacks, five tackles for loss, and ten hits on the quarterback in their 28-16 win. Nkemdiche is hoping to help contribute to that success this week against the Titans. In Tennessee’s game last week against the Arizona Cardinals, they gave up a total of six sacks, five to defensive end Chandler Jones. If Robert Nkemdiche is able to play, it’ll be his first NFL in almost two years.