Anon Uchenna Nwosu Jr. (born December 28, 1996) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

USC Trojans The USC Trojans (also Southern California Trojans) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ...

, and was selected by the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

in the second round with the 48th overall pick of the

2018 NFL draft The 2018 NFL draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington southwest of Dallas; it was ...

College career

Nwosu attended and played

at USC under head coaches

Steve Sarkisian Stephen Sarkisian (; born March 8, 1974)Stephens, Ken. – "QB Genealogy – Steve Sarkisian is latest in long line of talented BYU quarterbacks". – ''Dallas Morning News''– December 31, 1996. is an American football coach and former player ...

and

Clay Helton Clay Charles Helton (born June 24, 1972) is an American college football coach and former player, who is currently the head coach at Georgia Southern Eagles football, Georgia Southern. He was previously the head coach of USC Trojans football, US ...

. After playing in 12 games during his freshman season, Nwosu was not able to participate in the

2014 Holiday Bowl The 2014 Holiday Bowl was an American college football bowl game that was played on December 27, 2014, at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California. The 37th edition of the Holiday Bowl, it featured Nebraska from the Big Ten Conference and USC f ...

due to unspecified team rules violations. It was later reported that Nwosu did not enroll in the following spring semester. Despite speculation that he may leave the team, Nwosu was able to take summer classes and rejoin the team for the 2015 season. After his senior season at USC, Nwosu was named a co-MVP of USC along with quarterback

Sam Darnold Sam Richard Darnold (born June 5, 1997) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans football, USC Trojans, winn ...

. He was also on the watchlist for the

Butkus Award The Butkus Award, instituted in 1985 by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football. The award, named in honor of College Football Hall of Fame ...

. Overall, Nwosu played in 44 games in four seasons at USC, recording 169 total tackles, 12.5 sacks, 19 pass deflections, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble, and 1 fumble recovery. Following his senior season, he participated in the

2018 Senior Bowl The 2018 Senior Bowl was an all-star college football exhibition game featuring players from the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and prospects for the 2018 draft of the professional National Football League (NFL). The game was the last ...

Professional career

Los Angeles Chargers

The

selected Nwosu in the second round (48th overall) of the

. Nwosu was the sixth linebacker drafted in 2018. He played in his hometown of Carson at the temporary home of the Chargers at the

StubHub Center Dignity Health Sports Park is a multi-use sports complex located on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills, in Carson, California. The complex consists of the 27,000-seat Dignity Health Sports Park soccer stadium, the Dign ...

. On May 13, 2018, the Chargers signed Nwosu to a four-year, $5.75 million contract that includes $3.01 million guaranteed and a

signing bonus A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee (including a professional sports person) by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive ...

of $2.26 million. Nwosu entered

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events ...

slated as a backup outside linebacker. Head coach

Anthony Lynn Anthony Ray Lynn (born December 21, 1968) is an American professional football coach and former running back who is the run game coordinator and running backs coach for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played ...

named Nwosu the backup strongside linebacker to start the regular season, behind veteran Kyle Emanuel. He made his professional regular season debut in the Chargers' season-opening 38-28 loss to the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

. On September 16, 2018, Nwosu recorded three combined tackles and made his first career sack during a 31–20 victory at the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

in Week 2. Nwosu made his first career sack on Bills' quarterback

Josh Allen Joshua Patrick Allen (born May 21, 1996) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wyoming Cowboys football, Wyoming Cow ...

for a three-yard loss in the first quarter. As the Chargers made the playoffs, they faced off against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

in the Wild Card round. Nwosu made a critical play at the end of the game, forcing Ravens quarterback

Lamar Jackson Lamar Demeatrice Jackson Jr. (born January 7, 1997) is an American professional football quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisville Cardinals, winning the Heisman T ...

to fumble on what would have otherwise been a potential game winning drive for the Ravens. The Chargers recovered the fumble, sealing a 23–17 win to advance to the Divisional round. Nwosu finished the 2019 season with 31 tackles, two sacks, and three passes defensed. In 2020, Nwosu played in 13 games with four starts, recording 4.5 sacks, 33 tackles, and two passes defensed. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

on December 26, 2020.

Seattle Seahawks

On March 17, 2022, Nwosu signed a two-year contract with the

. In Week 1, Nwosu recorded seven tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble in a 17–16 win over the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

. He was awarded

National Football Conference The National Football Conference (NFC) is a conference of the National Football League (NFL), the highest level of professional American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference (AFC), each h ...

Defensive Player Of The Week for his performance. In his first year with the Seahawks, he recorded career highs in both total tackles and sacks. On July 24, 2023, Nwosu signed a three-year contract extension with the Seahawks. He suffered a pectoral injury in Week 7 and was placed on season-ending injured reserve on October 26, 2023. He finished with 16 tackles, two sacks, and two forced fumbles in six games.

References

External links

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Seattle Seahawks bioUSC Trojans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nwosu, Uchenna 1996 births Living people American players of American football of Nigerian descent American football outside linebackers Los Angeles Chargers players Players of American football from Carson, California Seattle Seahawks players USC Trojans football players Narbonne High School alumni