Uchenna Nwosu

Uchenna Nwosu (born December 28, 1996) is an American football defensive end for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC, and was drafted by the Chargers in the second round with the 48th overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft.

Uchenna Nwosu
Nwosu in 2019
No. 42 – Los Angeles Chargers
Position:Defensive end
Personal information
Born: (1996-12-28) December 28, 1996
Carson, California
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:251 lb (114 kg)
Career information
High school:Narbonne
(Harbor City, California)
College:USC
NFL Draft:2018 / Round: 2 / Pick: 48
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
  • First Team All-Pac-12 (2017)
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Total tackles:92
Sacks:10.0
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:0
Interceptions:0
Pass deflections:4
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

College career

Nwosu attended and played college football at USC under head coaches Steve Sarkisian and Clay Helton. After playing in 12 games during his freshman season, Nwosu was not able to participate in the 2014 Holiday Bowl due to unspecified team rules violations. It was later reported that Nwosu did not enroll in the following spring semester.[1] Despite speculation that he may leave the team, Nwosu was able to take summer classes and rejoin the team for the 2015 season.[2] After his senior season at USC, Nwosu was named a co-MVP of USC along with quarterback Sam Darnold.[3] He was also on the watchlist for the Butkus Award.[4] Following his senior season, he participated in the 2018 Senior Bowl.

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand size40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 2 1⁄8 in
(1.88 m)		 251 lb
(114 kg)		 33 5⁄8 in
(0.85 m)		 9 in
(0.23 m)		4.65 s1.63 s2.71 s4.27 s7.05 s32 in
(0.81 m)		9 ft 11 in
(3.02 m)		20 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[5][6]

The Los Angeles Chargers selected Nwosu in the second round (48th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft. Nwosu was the sixth linebacker drafted in 2018.[7] He played in his hometown of Carson at the temporary home of the Chargers at the StubHub Center.[8]

External video
Chargers draft Nwosu 48th overall
Instant Draft Grade: Uchenna Nwosu

On May 13, 2018, the Los Angeles Chargers signed Nwosu to a four-year, $5.75 million contract that includes $3.01 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $2.26 million.[9]

Nwosu entered training camp slated as a backup outside linebacker. Head coach Anthony Lynn named Nwosu the backup strongside linebacker to start the regular season, behind veteran Kyle Emanuel.[10]

He made his professional regular season debut in the Los Angeles Chargers’ season-opening 38-28 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. On September 16, 2018, Nwosu recorded three combined tackles and made his first career sack during a 31–20 victory at the Buffalo Bills in Week 2.[11] Nwosu made his first career sack on Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen for a three-yard loss in the first quarter.[12]

As the Chargers made the playoffs, they faced off against the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card round. Nwosu made a critical play at the end of the game, forcing Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson 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.[13][14]

Nwosu finished the 2019 season with 31 tackles, two sacks, and three passes defensed.[15]

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 on December 26, 2020.

Personal life

He is of Nigerian descent.[16]

References
  1. Klein, Gary (January 22, 2015). "USC linebacker Uchenna Nwosu not enrolled for spring semester". LA Times. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  2. Klein, Gary (June 1, 2015). "USC linebacker Uchenna Nwosu returns to classes and workouts". LA Times. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  3. Kaufman, Joey (December 13, 2017). "Quarterback Sam Darnold, linebacker Uchenna Nwosu named USC's co-MVPs". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  4. Castillo, Michael (July 17, 2017). "USC Football: Three Trojans make 2017 Butkus Award watch list". Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  5. "NFL Draft Prospect Profile - Uchenna Nwosu". nfl.com. March 1, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  6. "Southern California OLB Uchenna Nwosu : 2018 NFL Draft Scout Player Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  7. "2018 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  8. Woike, Dan. "Chargers draft Uchenna Nwosu out of USC with 48th pick in draft". Los Angeles Times. LA Times. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  9. "Spotrac.com: Uchenna Nwosu contract". Spotrac.com. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  10. "Chargers release first "unofficial" depth chart". boltsfromtheblue.com. September 4, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  11. "Final score, recap: Chargers 31, Bills 20". Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  12. "Los Angeles Chargers at Buffalo Bills - September 16th, 2018". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  13. Shaffer, Jonas (January 6, 2019). "At the end of a breakthrough rookie season, quarterback Lamar Jackson leaves Ravens needing more". The Baltimore Sun.
  14. Cannizzaro, Mark (January 6, 2019). "Chargers defense dominates the Ravens at their own game". New York Post.
  15. "Uchenna Nwosu". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
  16. "Nigeria dominates Africa's 2018 NFL draftee list". ESPN. April 23, 2018. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
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