The Seattle Seahawks have a strong group of edge rushers. But at the same time, they don’t currently have any that are among the game’s elite.

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Boye Mafe exploded for 9.0 sacks in 2023, but took a step back last year with 6.0. Derick Hall broke out for 8.0 sacks last season, but that was one year after a no-sack rookie campaign.

Four-time Pro Bowler DeMarcus Lawrence, who signed with Seattle in March, racked up 61.5 sacks over 11 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. But he recently turned 33 and hasn’t reached the seven-sack mark since 2018.

And after a 9.5-sack campaign in 2022, Uchenna Nwosu has been limited to just 12 games over the past two injury-marred seasons.

As a result, it wasn’t surprising that no Seahawks landed on ESPN’s recently published ranking of the league’s top-10 edge rushers.

“I think they’re a solid group, but they don’t have that superstar,” Bob Stelton said Wednesday on Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob.

What separates Mafe

But of the Seahawks’ edge rushers, who’s the closest to cracking top-10 status? Former NFL linebacker Dave Wyman went with Mafe.

Mafe, a 2022 second-round draft pick, showed big-time potential during his breakout nine-sack season in 2023 – which included a franchise-record seven consecutive games with at least one sack.

Wyman thought Mafe was poised for an even bigger season in 2024. But after three sacks through the first three games, Mafe missed the next two games with a knee injury and mustered just three more sacks the rest of the way.

Yet despite the small step back last fall, Wyman still thinks the 6-foot-4, 251-pound Mafe’s combination of power and finesse gives him the highest ceiling of the Seahawks’ edge-rushing group.

“I think he’s the one that’s the most talented,” Wyman said. “… I feel like you’ve kind of seen the glimpse of what Boye Mafe’s upside is, and it’s good. It’s very good. But we’ll see if he can put it together and maybe have one of those superstar type of seasons.”

Listen to the full Wyman and Bob conversation at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

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