Cooper Kupp makes deal with Seahawks LB to keep jersey number

New Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp will keep his iconic No. 10 jersey, but not without some negotiating.

Dec 28, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp (10) waves to fans as he leaves the field after defeating the Arizona Cardinals at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

When football fans think of Cooper Kupp, they most likely think of him wearing No. 10 on his jersey. He wore that number throughout his outstanding collegiate career at Eastern Washington, then after starting his NFL career in No. 18, swtiched to No. 10 in 2020 and hasn't looked back since.

Upon signing with the Seattle Seahawks, though, Kupp faced something of a dilema.

The Seahawks already had a player wearing No. 10, that being pass rusher Uchenna Nwosu. So if Kupp wanted that number, he was going to need to do some convincing.

Dec 4, 2022; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (10) and linebacker Cody Barton (57) react against the Los Angeles Rams during the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Ultimately, the two made a deal for Kupp to take No. 10 while Nwosu switched to No. 7, the number he wore in high school. In return, Kupp made a donation to the Uchnna Nwosu foundation, which seeks to "assist and educate disadvantaged and at-risk youths become more responsible, accountable and capable of making healthier lifestyle decisions and choices."

Allow him to re-introduce himself. pic.twitter.com/ir6KcraYqP

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) March 18, 2025

"He's got a foundation that's doing some really good stuff here in the community, and it was important for him that that be part of this change," Kupp told reporters at Tuesday's introductory press conference. "He was great to work with, and I was able to donate to his foundation and make sure that he felt good about that.

"He mentioned he's played his best football in No. 10, and it had been important to him, and just his time in Seattle. And just clearly the community was an important part of this whole thing, so I respect his desires there, and we were able to work it out, and really thankful for him being able to work something out for us."

Nwosu switched to No. 10 upon joining the Seahawks in 2022, as he previously wore No. 42 with the Los Angeles Chargers. He had an outstanding first season in Seattle with 9.5 sacks, but has sadly been limited to just six games in each of the past two seasons due to injury. He hopes to bounce back in 2025.

Kupp is looking for a bounce-back season of his own, having just been released by the Los Angeles Rams last week. Now, he gets to play his former team twice a year, and come back to his home state.

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