Seahawks make trade to boost their pass-rush options following injury to Uchenna Nwosu

Having traded away their most productive pass rusher over the last three seasons, the Seattle Seahawks saw their options at outside linebacker take a big hit in their final preseason game when Uchenna Nwosu went down with a knee injury against the Cleveland Browns.

Nwosu suffered the injury on a chop block from Browns guard Wyatt Teller, marking an extremely unfortunate turn of events for a team that traded edge rusher Darrell Taylor to the Chicago Bears the day before the game.

Head coach Mike MacDonald could not immediately confirm how long Nwosu would be out for, but the Seahawks made a move fortify their edge rush depth on Monday, with Seattle trading a late-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for Trevis Gipson. NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reported the move.

Gipson signed with the Jaguars back in March following a disappointing sole season with the Tennessee Titans in which he played only eight games and did not register a sack.

However, Gipson has previously proven himself to be a solid rotational pass rusher. He had seven sacks with the Chicago Bears in 2021. That number dropped to three in 2022, but he tallied 30 total pressures, per Pro Football Focus.

Last year, Gipson ranked 12th among edge defenders with at least 10 pass rush snaps in pass rush win rate (18.9%). In his career-best 2021 season, Gipson was ranked seventh among edge defenders in PFF pass rush grade (min. 10 snaps).

Still only 27, Gipson has the ability to rediscover that kind of form in Seattle. His place in the pecking order will depend on the length of Nwosu's potential absence. However, Gipson's arrival puts the Seahawks in a much better position at edge rusher, with the versatile Dre'Mont Jones set to play more snaps on the edge in 2024 and Boye Mafe looking to make the leap after posting nine sacks last year. In addition to that pair and Nwosu, the Seahawks also have 2023 second-round pick Derick Hall.

Following the Taylor trade and the Nwosu injury, the Seahawks needed another edge rusher whom they could trust to provide consistent disruption. Gipson gives them that and, at the price of a late-round pick, could prove to be a steal for the Seahawks.

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