The Seattle Seahawks looked to their rival to improve their pass rush as the team has agreed to terms with former San Francisco 49ers defensive end Kerry Hyder. Seattle also re-signed Benson Mayowa which means the brief Carlos Dunlap era could be coming to an end.
“Former 49ers’ DE Kerry Hyder is signing a three-year, $16.5 million deal with upside to $17.5 million with the Seattle Seahawks, per his rep @ErikBurkhardt,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter detailed on Twitter.
The Seahawks signed Mayowa to a one-year deal last offseason, and the pass rusher will be part of the team’s long-term plans. According to The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar, Mayowa is signing a four-year contract, but this includes two voidable seasons at the end of the deal to help the Seahawks with cap room this offseason.
“Seattle has agreed to re-sign defensive end Benson Mayowa to a four-year deal that voids after the first two years, a league source confirmed to The Athletic,” Dugar tweeted. “Mayowa re-signing was first reported by NFL Network. Mayowa, 29, was one of Seattle’s best pass rushers last season.”
Hyder was one of the top Niners’ pass rushers last season notching 8.5 sacks, 18 quarterback hits and 49 tackles in 16 games. The sizable contract puts Dunlap’s future with the Seahawks very much in doubt.
Not everyone believes the Seahawks are ruling out finding a way to re-sign Dunlap who remains on the free-agent market. The Seattle Times’ Bob Condotta noted the signings do not “necessarily preclude bringing back Dunlap.”
“My understanding is Seattle [plans] to use Kerry Hyder mostly at the 5-tech spot and not at the LEO position,” Condotta tweeted. “So it doesn’t necessarily preclude bringing back Carlos Dunlap.”
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Mayowa: ‘I’ve Always Had a Chip on My Shoulder’
Benson Mayowa with the strip-sack off the left tackle!! Look at the swipe-rip around the edge.
Dude has been on fire today with 2 sacks today. Great game last week too. #Seahawks
Mayowa began his NFL career with the Seahawks in 2013 as an undrafted free agent. The pass rusher then had stints with the Raiders (twice), Cowboys and Cardinals before rejoining the Seahawks last offseason.
Mayowa posted 24 tackles, six sacks, nine quarterback hits and two forced fumbles in 13 appearances in 2020. Despite his success in the league, Mayowa admits he still plays with a chip on his shoulder that comes from being an undrafted player.
“I’ve always had a chip on my shoulder and I felt like it never left,” Mayowa told the Associated Press in August 2020. “I feel like once you get comfortable that’s when you get out. I’ve never been comfortable I’m still not comfortable many years later. So I think as long as I keep that chip on my shoulder, and I stay hungry I can play this game as long as I want to.”
Kerry Hyder Exceded 49ers’ Head Coach Kyle Shanahan’s Expectations
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan raved about Hyder throughout the 2020 season. Prior to his one season with the 49ers, Hyder played for the Jets, Lions and Cowboys. Shanahan admitted he expected Hyder to be a “very good role player” for the Niners, but the defensive end exceeded his expectations.
“I can’t say enough about Kerry. Kerry’s been a stud,” Shanahan said on KNBR’s Murph & Mac show in November 2020, via 49ersWebZone.com. “I’ve heard about him for a few years. Really just got to meet him this year. He was a stud in training camp, and how hard he went, never took a day off, never missed anything with injuries. …I thought he was going to be a very good role player for us this year and give us some depth, and by the [third] game of the year, he’s starting for us, and he’s been having to do it every week.”
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Seahawks Sign 2 Pass Rushers Including Rival Sack Master: Report