The Las Vegas Raiders have been busy this offseason making a number of notable additions in free agency.
Unfortunately, they were forced to part ways with some players that became key contributors during the 2019 NFL season. Among them was defensive end Benson Mayowa.
The Raiders have managed to secure more than enough depth on the edge in recent years. As a result, Mayowa was allowed to test the waters of free agency and it appears he has found a new home.
According to ESPN’s Field Yates, Mayowa has signed with the Seattle Seahawks:
The Seahawks have signed former Raiders DE Benson Mayowa, per his agent @davidcanter. He piled up 7.0 sacks last season in a rotational role. Some pass-rushing juice for Seattle.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) April 1, 2020
The departure of Mayowa deals quite a blow to the Raiders’ pass rush. He played an integral role helping to revamp this group after finishing the 2019 campaign with 15 tackles and 7.0 sacks while playing primarily in passing situations.
The Seahawks have been scouring the free agency market to address their needs on the edge. Mayowa certainly provides a major boost given his skill set as a pass rusher. Of course, it remains to be seen whether or not his signing will have any impact on their attempts to re-sign defensive end Jadeveon Clowney.
Seattle is among the notable teams that have been linked to Clowney this offseason, however, the lack of steam behind negotiations indicates that little headway has been made. As a result, it seems they opted to secure Mayowa before another team had a chance to pick him up. He will now have another opportunity to potentially earn a long-term deal for himself after next season.
Meanwhile, the Raiders still boost a surplus of talent on the edge with Clelin Ferrell, Maxx Crosby, and Arden Key. Not to mention, they also brought in another quality pass rusher to provide depth in former Cleveland Browns defensive end Carl Nassib.
