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Seahawks' Uchenna Nwosu out at least four more games, report says

Bob Condotta, The Seattle Times on

Published in Football

SEATTLE — The Seahawks will reportedly place outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu on injured reserve on Tuesday because of a thigh injury he suffered in Sunday’s 29-20 loss to the New York Giants.

The move was first reported by the NFL Network on Tuesday morning. The Seahawks had not made the move official by the start of Tuesday’s practice and given a short week with a game Thursday against the San Francisco 49ers could wait until game day to make it.

Going on IR means Nwosu will need to miss at least four games, beginning with the 49ers game.

He will be eligible to return for a Nov. 17 game at San Francisco, which comes the week after the Seahawks’ bye.

The bye likely plays into the decision to play Nwosu on IR now since it would give him an extra week of rest to assure he is fully healed before he could return to practice and potentially play.

Nwosu missed the first four games of the regular season with a sprained knee suffered in the preseason finale against Cleveland on Aug. 24.

The Seahawks did not put Nwosu on IR then, gambling he’d be ready to play before four games had passed — the minimum a player has to sit out if placed on IR.

Nwosu was not ready until Week 5 against the Giants.

He played 20 snaps Sunday before he was injured and ruled out, missing the entire second half. That was his first game since Oct. 22, 2023, when he suffered a season-ending pectoral injury in a game against Arizona. That caused him to miss the final 11 games of the 2023 season.

Nwosu, 28, originally signed a two-year deal worth just over $19 million with the Seahawks in March 2022 after spending four years with the Chargers. He tied with Darrell Taylor for the team lead in sacks in 2022 with 9.5, which led to him signing a new three-year contract extension with Seattle in July 2023, worth up to $45 million with $16 million guaranteed.

Nwosu has played just seven games on that contract and is now set to miss at least four more before returning. He had two sacks and six QB hits in 2023 before being injured.

 

The deal has two years remaining after this season but no more guaranteed money and depending on how things develop the Seahawks could have a decision on their hands at the end of the season since his cap number balloons from $7.8 million this year to $21.4 million in 2025.

A clause in his contract guarantees him $6 million if he is still on the roster on Feb. 10.

The deal includes just over $13 million in dead cap for 2025 but savings of $8.4 million if he were released.

Nwosu was expected to be a centerpiece of new coach Mike Macdonald’s efforts rebuilding the defense before he was injured on a chop block thrown by Cleveland’s Wyatt Teller. Teller received a penalty for the play.

With Nwosu out, the Seahawks have gone with third-year player Boye Mafe and second-year player Derick Hall as its starting outside linebackers/edge rushers most of the season.

Hall and Mafe are also battling injuries as the showdown with the 49ers looms.

Hall was listed as a nonparticipant in practice Monday with a foot injury suffered against the Giants and Mafe as limited with a knee injury that has held him out the last two games.

Putting Nwosu on IR will open up a spot on the 53-man roster. But a move to fill that spot had not yet been made known as of Tuesday morning.

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©2024 The Seattle Times. Visit seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

 

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