Seahawks save almost $10 million thanks to oft-injured vet taking steep pay cut

The Seattle Seahawks may have all the major pieces in place, but they are far from done making moves in free agency. We know this because the team has reportedly been actively meeting with a few interior offensive linemen like Teven Jenkins and Dillon Radunz, as well as at least one veteran wide receiver in Michael Gallup.

One problem they may run into is that there's not a ton of salary cap space left after signing Sam Darnold, Cooper Kupp and DeMarcus Lawrence all to significantly-sized three-year contracts. The team got some relief yesterday, though - as it appears that outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu has agreed to a restructured contract that amounts to a steep paycut.

According to figures at Over the Cap H/T Hawkblogger, the move saves the team over $9 million in salary cap space.

Dec 11, 2022; Seattle, Washington, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold (14) passes against Seattle Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (10) during the second quarter at Lumen Field. | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Since coming over from the Los Angeles Chargers as a free agent acquisition two years ago, Nwosu hasn't had much luck in Seattle. While he performed very well in the first half of the 2023 season, he's been bitten by the injury bug multiple times since - and has had to sit out for 22 out of 34 games over the last two years.

Nwosu could still be a huge difference-maker for Mike Macdonald's defense if he can stay healthy. In that first stretch with Seattle the unit's success against the run was significantly better when Nwosu was out there compared to after his pectoral injury that sidelined him for the rest of the 2023 campaign. From there Nwosu also suffered another injury in the 2024 preseason finale that kept him out until Week 5 - when he suffered a thigh injury that put him out for the team's next seven games.

While it would be great to see Nwosu play a full 17 games, the Seahawks have already hedged their bets here by bringing in DeMarcus Lawrence, who projects as the team's starter on the other side of their defensive line with Dre'Mont Jones out of the picture. If Nwosu gets hurt again, Boye Mafe should be the next man up.

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