Seattle Seahawks predicted to sign $56 million four-time Pro Bowler in free agency

The Seattle Seahawks will be getting one of their key pieces back soon as they prepare for the stretch run of the 2024 regular season. That would be the team's top outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu, who's expected to return from the injured reserve list soon. Nwosu has been snake-bitten by injuries since the middle of the 2023 campaign, when he suffered a season-ending pectoral tear. Nwosu also got dinged by an MCL sprain in the last preseason game of the year, which knocked him out until Week 5, when he suffered a thigh injury that's put him on the sidelines ever since.

Nwosu is a superb defender when he's healthy, but needless to say the Seahawks can't exactly bank on him being in the lineup every week given how things have gone for him. If Nwosu gets hurt again before the end of the season it might be wise to cut their losses and make him a salary cap casualty next year. Should that happen they could be able to replace him on the cheap, assuming Boye Mafe and Derick Hall are ready to step up and start together at the top of the edge rotation.

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If that's the case, the Seahawks might want to consider signing Matt Judon in free agency. That's exactly what Bleacher Report is expecting, anyway.

B/R on Matt Judon to Seahawks

"The Seahawks are projected to be $5 million over the cap entering 2025 free agency, so they may face limited options. It would make sense to target players who may be amenable to a low-risk "prove-it" deal. Falcons pass-rusher Matthew Judon may end up being just such a player. The four-time Pro Bowler has been fantastic in past seasons but has struggled to make a significant impact in Atlanta. Judon spent three seasons playing under Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald, who served as Baltimore's linebackers coach from 2018 to 2020."

While Judon would be cheap and does have the added benefit of previous experience with Macdonald, he's also not the player he used to be - certainly not when he signed his four-year, $56 million extension with the New England Patriots back in 2021.

So far this season Judon has appeared in 11 games for the Atlanta Falcons, but he's only totaled 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hits and seven pressures. That's not the kind of production you'd hope for, even from a number three option in your edge rush group.

Moreover, after struggling for a season and a half, Dre'Mont Jones has come on strong recently. If Seattle's front office decides to keep Jones around for 2025 then they may not need to sign another edge, even if only for added depth. 

Judon may be an option worth considering on a one-year, prove-it deal, but not until after the draft - and only then if they haven't managed to build up their rotation as much as they'd like.