Seahawks sign former top-10 pick Devin Bush, per report

Bush is Seattle's third signing of the day, as the Seahawks are close to being able to field a full roster already, 3/16/2023

The Seattle Seahawks will indeed employ linebackers next season. According to Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times late Thursday night, the Seahawks signed former 10th overall pick Devin Bush following a four-year career with the Pittsburgh Steelers; I wrote about Bush in a recent review of the 2019 NFL Draft. Bush appeared in all 17 games last season, recording 81 tackles, but he was relegated to the Steelers bench for the final two games of the year.

Bob Condotta @bcondotta

League source tells the Seattle Times the Seahawks on Thursday night came to terms with free agent linebacker Devin Bush: seattletimes.com/sports/seahawk… via @seattletimes

Once an elite draft prospect out of the University of Michigan, Bush was a four-star linebacker recruit out of Pembroke Pines, Florida in the 2016 high school class. Bush had 161 tackles, 18.5 tackles for a loss, and nine sacks as a sophomore and junior with the Wolverines, then posted a 4.43 40-yard dash with a 6.93 three-cone and 40.5” vertical at 5’11, 234 lbs at the 2019 combine.

The only major concern, as is often the case in the draft, was that Bush was undersized for the NFL:

Undersized three-down linebacker with the speed and cover talent to make an easy transition to WILL linebacker as a pro. There will be NFL defenses who pass on Bush due to his lack of size, but his ability to play fast and free as an outside linebacker should supersede those concerns. He will miss some tackles and get engulfed by blockers at other times, but his play strength and ability to run and cover are extremely valuable in today's game and should not be diminished due to a tape measurement.

The Steelers traded up to make Bush the highest pick that the franchise had made since Plaxico Burress in 2000, and he responded with 109 tackles, two interceptions, and nine tackles for a loss as a rookie, finishing third in DROY voting behind Nick Bosa and Maxx Crosby.

But Bush tore his ACL five games into 2020 and he’s never returned to form.

Bush was also one of the “Best dressed at the 2019 draft”

On the Seahawks, Bush slots in between Uchenna Nwosu and some combination of Boye Mafe, Darrell Taylor, and perhaps Tyreke Smith, Alton Robinson, depending on who else Seattle adds to their edge group before Week 1. The team isn’t sure when Jordyn Brooks will return from his own ACL injury—or how he will rebound when he does.

The team has to make a decision on his fifth-year option by May.

Though the Seahawks run a “3-4” base defense, the more realistic picture would still be a 3-3-5 with three linebackers, especially given the personnel added in the first week of free agency. Right now, the defensive linemen ahead of the linebackers are Jarran Reed, Dre’Mont Jones, Al Woods, and Bryan Mone. The secondary is Quandre Diggs, Jamal Adams, Tariq Woolen, Coby Bryant, Tre Brown, and the team has made tender offers to Mike Jackson, Ryan Neal, and Myles Adams.

Bush made a visit with the team on Thursday, but we haven’t heard word yet on Lonnie Johnson or Julian Love. He is Thursday’s third signing after Evan Brown and Drew Lock. The Seahawks are actually very close to being able to field a full roster, giving them all kinds of options leading into one of the most historic drafts in franchise history in capital alone.