Seahawks LB Devin Bush Looking to Seize Special Opportunity vs. Former Team

Emotions will be running high for Devin Bush as he gears up to start for the Seattle Seahawks against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the team he spent his first four NFL seasons with coming out of Michigan, creating an interesting sub-plot for Sunday's de facto playoff game at Lumen Field.

RENTON, Wash. - Only two months after suffering a torn ACL, the Seattle Seahawks knew they needed a quality veteran insurance policy to help safeguard against the possibility Jordyn Brooks would miss extended time during the 2023 season.

Wasting little time addressing the situation at linebacker once free agency opened, Seattle quickly identified former Pittsburgh first-round pick Devin Bush as a prioritized target. Impressed by what he saw in his visit to the VMAC with Pete Carroll and the coaching staff, the ex-Michigan star signed the dotted line on a one-year, $3.5 million deal hoping to jump start his once promising career in the Pacific Northwest.

At the time, even after bringing back Bobby Wagner a couple weeks later, the Seahawks expected the athletic, versatile Bush to be in the mix for immediate playing time on defense. But that ended up not being the case, as Brooks beat tremendous odds to return to the field less than eight months after reconstructive knee surgery and started in the team's season opener, leaving the Florida native without a clear role beyond special teams.

Set to receive his second start in a Seahawks uniform in place of a banged-up Jordyn Brooks, Devin Bush will have to weather a storm of emotions going against his former team :: © Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK

“We hoped that he’d be right in the midst of competition for playing time and all and contributing in a number of ways," Carroll told reporters prior to Wednesday's practice. "He’s a really good all-around athlete and he’s got good versatility to him. You’ve seen us play him on the edge quite a bit as an outside backer. He has all of that flexibility, and he’s a really good natural football player. He’s fit in. It’s been hard behind Bobby [Wagner] and Jordyn [Brooks] a good deal of the time, but his spirit has always been there."

With a healthy Brooks and Wagner in front of him on the depth chart, playing time has been scarce for Bush all season long. Along with being deactivated as a healthy scratch four times, he has played in five other games without seeing a single defensive snap and only played more than 20 defensive snaps four times, limiting his opportunities to show what he can do.

But when Bush has had a chance to play for the Seahawks, including jumping in for an injured Brooks for the entire second half in last Sunday's 20-17 win over the Titans, he has made the most of his chances. Helping limit star running back Derrick Henry to just 30 yards on 11 carries in the final two quarters, he racked up a season-high six tackles and a tackle for loss, making a positive impact on defense during the comeback victory in Nashville.

With Brooks continuing to deal with a sore ankle that could keep him sidelined for at least a week, Bush looks poised to make his second start in a Seattle uniform on Sunday. Adding further intrigue, he will likely jump into the lineup alongside Wagner against Pittsburgh, his original team that drafted him 10th overall in 2019.

In four seasons with the Steelers, Bush started 48 games, recording 286 tackles, four sacks, 13 tackles for loss, and two interceptions. A torn ACL of his own slowed him down after a stellar rookie season and ultimately, the franchise declined his fifth-year option and decided to move on from him last spring, pouring extra fuel on the fire leading up to Sunday's game.

"He’s got a great chance to play a lot this week, and I know he’ll be fired up about that," Carroll said of Bush starting against his former team. "There’s always something to that. Last week, Rio [Mario Edwards Jr.] had his chance to go back against his old club. There’s something to that that just kind of juices guys and I totally respect that, and I like honoring that, because it’s meaningful. It means something.”

As Carroll noted, rather than downplay a game for a player against a former team, understanding the significance of such "special circumstances," he tries to maximize the opportunity while also eliminating potential distractions that could negatively impact performance.

In the past, when veterans such as Jamal Adams went against a former employer, Carroll has spent extensive time behind the scenes talking his players through the situation to help ease and clear their minds for optimum performance on Sunday. This week will be no different with Bush as he aims to harness the linebacker's excitement about playing against the Steelers while also maintaining focus on preparation.

“The fact that he’s playing against his old team, and he got drafted by them and all of that kind of stuff, as well as gameplan and prepping and all of that, there’s a lot going on," Carroll acknowledged. "This is an important week for him to be right down the middle and keep his head down and get his work done so that he can prepare well. What he wants to do is help his team play well, and he’s got to be really ready to do that."

Looking towards kickoff on Sunday, Bush's familiarity with former teammates such as running back Najae Harris and tight end Pat Friermuth on the other side of the football should serve him well. At the same time, however, the Steelers have no shortage of intel on his perceived strengths and weaknesses from his four seasons with the franchise to scheme ways to effectively attack him, which always creates a unique challenge for the player and his new team.

Having been through the rigors of a "revenge" week with countless players over the years, Carroll doesn't want an overhyped Bush to play out of control or weighed down by his nerves and will make every effort to communicate with him over the course of the week. With Seattle jockeying for one of the final two wild card spots in the NFC with two games left, the team needs a strong performance from him filling in for Brooks, which adds even more potential pressure onto his plate.

But the Seahawks tabbed Bush as an injury replacement for Brooks back in March for a reason, believing they could highlight his talent and ability in their scheme and he would benefit from a change of scenery. Nine months later, after waiting in the wings for his shot, Carroll has no shortage of confidence in him and hopes to see him play within himself in the heat of a playoff race, not letting circumstances overwhelm him.

"There’s a reason to be distracted. First time he’s gotten to play a lot possibly and then his club and whatever else is going on. That’s the kind of guy I’m looking forward to hanging out a bit little with this week and talking him through it and just seeing how he’s doing and making sure that he’s level and clear.”

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