RENTON, Wash. – Bruce Irvin was excitedly discussing his first sack in nearly three years after the Seattle Seahawks’ win over the Arizona Cardinals last Sunday when a question about fellow outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu caused him to shift into an almost reverent tone.
“He’s the real deal,” Irvin said of Nwosu, who had just notched two more sacks to give him seven through nine games. “He is the real deal. He don’t get the fame or recognition that he deserves. Guy just comes in, busts his tail every day and he produces. You see it, four sacks in the last two games. He’s one of the top edge guys in the league, if you ask me.”
It wasn't until Irvin returned last month for his third stint with Seattle that he realized the talent of Nwosu. And by coach Pete Carroll’s admission, not even the Seahawks knew it when they signed Nwosu to a two-year, $19.055 million deal in March. At the time, they viewed the 25-year-old as a young, physical and ascending player whose experience in a similar defensive system with the Los Angeles Chargers made him an ideal fit in their transition to a predominantly 3-4 front.
Two months into the season, Nwosu already looks like the Seahawks’ best free agent signing since Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril in 2012, based on production and value.
Nwosu’s seven sacks are two more than his career-high from last season and tied for seventh most in the NFL. His 24 pressures are tied for 12th most, according to ESPN Stats & Information, and his eight tackles for loss are tied for 11th. He has two forced fumbles, including one at the goal line that helped Seattle hang on for a season-opening win against Russell Wilson and the Denver Broncos.
“Man, he has been so good,” Carroll said on his weekly radio show. “He has just been so good, so tough, consistent, creative. He’s been feisty, and he’s been productive. The sacks that he’s getting and the contribution to the sacks, but it’s also the hits at the line of scrimmage and in the backfield, the way he’s taking on blocks and attacking stuff. He’s just been fantastic. This is a Pro Bowl season you’re looking at right here.”
A second-round pick by the Chargers out of USC in 2018, Nwosu spent his first three seasons as mostly a backup to Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram, a pair of Pro Bowlers, before becoming a full-time starter in 2021. He was also held back in a system that didn’t always allow him to be on the attack.
The handcuffs are now off in Seattle.
The Seahawks, as Carroll describes it, have cut Nwosu loose and given him the freedom to trust his instincts to take shots. If he sees an opportunity to make a play, he has the green light to abandon his responsibility, knowing that other defenders will adjust and provide him cover.
“He has just gone off with that,” Carroll said on his radio show. “That’s not the style of play that he was in. They were more strict about the way they made him play on the edge. He was always with his outside arm free and knocking the blocks back, which he did fine. He did a solid job. So when we took him, we were in need of an edge player that could be a starter, and he could be a starter, but I did not see the dynamic play that he’s making. He had [five] sacks last year, had a good solid year playing on the other side of Bosa … But this is a whole new level, and it’s really fun to watch.”
General manager John Schneider and his scouting department struck gold in the offseason. Their draft class has already produced several big-time contributors, including a pair of Rookie-of-the-Year candidates in cornerback Tariq Woolen and running back Ken Walker III. They also hit on several veteran additions. Shelby Harris, acquired from the Broncos in the Wilson trade, has been arguably their most impactful interior defensive lineman. Irvin and No. 3 wide receiver Marquise Goodwin are filling key roles on minimum-salary deals.
Nwosu has been the best of the bunch, and at a relative bargain.
The $9.53 million average of his deal is the largest the Seahawks have given to a free agent from another team since Carroll and Schneider took over in 2010. But that says as much about their unwillingness to make big splurges in March as it does about the investment they made in Nwosu. His average per year ranks 33rd among edge players, according to Over The Cap.
It would be a surprise if the Seahawks don’t try to extend him this offseason, considering the way players and coaches rave about him.
“This guy is first-class, business all day, incredible work ethic, super, super smart,” defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt said. “He’s unselfish with his ability to go work with the other guys that’s around him, and a great leader for young players in terms of how to conduct yourself … I just can’t say enough positive things about this cat. The human being that he is, the player that he is. And he’s young. He’s only getting better. He’s going to continue to improve facets of this game. Thank God we got him. So, so lucky.”