CHICAGO-- Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu had been working his way back from injuries and since Week 13 against the Arizona Cardinals has been slowly but surely making his presence be felt out on the field.
"I'm definitely getting a lot more comfortable trusting myself and my body a lot more," Nwosu said. "That first game at Arizona, it was kind of a little warmup. Green Bay was still 'ehh', but last week, Vikings, I kind of let it loose, didn't think about it. Same thing today, getting more comfortable being on that field, making change of direction plays and hitting again because a big part of it. So just getting more comfortable."
And today seemed to mark a positive turning point for Nwosu as he was able to get to Bears quarterback Caleb Williams for a sack. Nwosu, who in 2022, before dealing with injuries, had 9.5 sacks on the season.
"It felt really good," Nwosu said on making the play. "Just coming off the year that I've had missing so much time and just dealing with injuries just felt good to finally go out there and get one man. Just long time coming."
Leonard Williams, who was also Nwosu's teammate during their time at USC, said it was amazing to watch Nwosu get a sack.
"We actually talked about that on the sideline," Williams said. "He said that was his first sack he's gotten in a year. Just hearing that from him, it was amazing for me to hear. When I first got here last year in the trade, he was one of those guys I was looking forward to playing with. I played with him at USC, and I was looking forward to getting some burn with him. Then he got injured, he's been battling a lot of things, and it was awesome to see him—even when he was dealing with injuries, he was always locked in on the sideline, and now he's playing his role."
While Nwosu was injured he talked about how important it was for him to be around his teammates and be a leader for them even though he couldn't physically be out on the field.
"Just like Jarran Reed, he's one of those guys who understands the game," Williams said. "He's a veteran, and he's a great communicator. I love being on his side of the ball, even throughout camp and stuff like that when I started to get more of an experience of how it is to play with him. It showed up today as well where I'm in my three-point stance and I'm feeling like it's run, and he's like, 'Leo, pass, pass, pass.' Those small details allows me to play a little bit faster, so having guys like that next to you makes a big difference."
Head coach Mike Macdonald acknowledged what an accomplishment it was for Nwosu.
"He's fired up," Macdonald said. "That was great. If you just pause time and think about the journey that he's been in, it's pretty awesome. Yeah, it's pretty cool."
And on the day as a whole, the Seahawks racked up 7.0 sacks among six different players.
"It was a lot of fun. Definitely a lot of fun," Nwosu said on the way the defense was playing. "That's something we talked about in the defensive meeting the night before, is allowing everybody to eat and that was a true game where everybody was in on the action. It's fun to see guys making plays and everybody smiling, having fun and competing about who's going to get more. So that's the type of team you want to play around."
Must-see shots of the Seahawks at their Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks wide receiver Jake Bobo (19) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks punter Michael Dickson (4) and Seahawks kicker Jason Myers (5) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (91) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks linebacker Boye Mafe (53) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks linebacker Boye Mafe (53) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Kenny McIntosh (25) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48), Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams (99), and Seahawks free safety Julian Love (20) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett (16) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett (16) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett (16) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks tackle Abraham Lucas (72) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks guard Sataoa Laumea (63) and Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Tre Brown (22) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe (29) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (10) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks players at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks kicker Jason Myers (5) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks players at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks linebacker Boye Mafe (53) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks players at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks players at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks players at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks punter Michael Dickson (4) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks nose tackle Jarran Reed (90) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks nose tackle Jarran Reed (90) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks nose tackle Jarran Reed (90) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
Seahawks nose tackle Jarran Reed (90) at the Week 17 matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Thursday, December 26, 2024.
