Report: Seahawks Release DE Benson Mayowa

After signing three free agents and hosting a 42-minute press conference, Seahawks general manager John Schneider, head coach Pete Carroll and company are still not done on a very busy Wednesday. Per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Seattle has now released defensive end Benson Mayowa.

The #Seahawks are releasing DE Benson Mayowa, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 16, 2022

The decision to move on from Mayowa, which saves $1.5 million in salary cap space, does not come as a surprise, especially after the Seahawks' addition of free agent edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu earlier in the day.

Mayowa, 30, has spent the last two seasons in Seattle and put together a strong 2020 campaign to earn a two-year, $7.6 million contract last March. Unfortunately, as he took on a more prominent role as the defense's starting SAM linebacker, the Inglewood, California native proved incapable of repeating that success in 2021, posting the second-fewest pressures (15) of his career while recording just 1.0 sack.

Thus, the writing was on the wall in regards to his eventual exit. And with Nwosu's arrival, along with the Seahawks placing an emphasis on improving their pass rushing rotation even further, Mayowa's role had been reduced to a minimum. Now, he'll have to look for another opportunity after departing the Pacific Northwest for the second time in his career.

As for the Seahawks, the quest to further bolster their group of edges carries on. But the top of the market has been wiped clean, with Haason Reddick (Eagles), Chandler Jones (Raiders), Von Miller (Bills), Za'Darius Smith (Ravens) and Randy Gregory (Broncos) finding new homes. So perhaps Seattle's next step in trying to get to the quarterback more efficiently will have to wait a few weeks until the draft in late April.