Marcus Smith - Pro Football Rumors

Jets To Work Out Marcus Smith

November 13th, 2018 at 1:36pm CST by Zachary Links

Former Eagles first-round defensive end Marcus Smith will work out for the Jets on Tuesday, Manish Mehta of the Daily News tweets. This is the first we’ve heard of Smith since his release from the Seahawks in August.

Towards the end of the summer, Smith was said to be considering retirement. The Seahawks were cautiously optimistic about what he could do this season, but they cut ties as his motivation was called into question.

In three seasons with the Eagles, Smith never made a start and registered only four sacks. In 2016, the 26-year-old Smith played on only 20% of Philadelphia’s defensive snaps.

The Seahawks scooped up Smith after he was released in the summer of 2017 and he showed some promise in a limited role. In 252 snaps, Smith had 14 tackles and 2.5 sacks, and he was re-signed to a one-year deal that could have paid him up to $2.7MM this year.

The Jets are also taking a look at outside linebacker Marquis Flowers and it seems likely that they’ll made at least one addition to their pass rush this week.

Marcus Smith May Retire

August 20th, 2018 at 11:39am CST by Zachary Links

Former Seahawks defensive end Marcus Smith may retire after just four seasons in the NFL, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Smith, a former first-round pick of the Eagles, was not fully committed to playing in 2018, which led to his release from Seattle.

In three seasons with the Eagles, Smith never made a start and registered only four sacks. In 2016, the 26-year-old Smith played on only 20% of Philadelphia’s defensive snaps.

The Seahawks scooped up Smith after he was released last summer and he showed some promise in a limited role. In 252 snaps, Smith had 14 tackles and 2.5 sacks, and he was re-signed to a one-year deal that could have paid him up to $2.7MM this year.

After four total years in the league, the former first-round pick seems ready to move on to something else.

NFC West Notes: 49ers, Cooper, Seahawks

August 17th, 2018 at 3:29pm CST by Zachary Links

Jonathan Cooper has progressed to the point he’s working with the 49ers’ second-team guards in training camp, Matt Barrows of The Athletic writes. Although Cooper played in Week 17 last season, he underwent offseason knee surgery, so it’s a good sign for his progress.

Cooper is now in the hunt for a starting role opposite of Joshua Garnett, who also recently returned to practice after he was sidelined by a knee injury. Neither guard played last week in San Francisco’s preseason opener, but now that they are back in the saddle, it doesn’t sound like the Niners will be forced to look for outside help.

Here’s more from the NFC West:

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll says a personal issue with Marcus Smith was a factor in his release. (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson). Carroll added that Smith understood the decision, which suggests that the defensive end did not ask for his release. The Seahawks will save roughly $1MM against the cap by cutting Smith, though they have spent an equal amount to bring in linebacker Erik Walden.
The 49ers don’t have a traditional No. 1 wide receiver after bypassing Sammy Watkins and Allen Robinson in free agency and, thus far, have avoided Dez Bryant. Kyle Shanahan is confident enough in his offensive scheme that he doesn’t believe it requires a WR1-type talent for it to be effective, and that’s why Matt Miller of Bleacher Report doesn’t see San Francisco taking a wide receiver in the 2019 draft. Of course, it’s incredibly early in the process, and Pierre Garcon’s reliability in his age-32 season will surely factor into the 49ers’ offseason decisions on the receiver front.
We’ve heard that the Rams and Aaron Donald are making progress on a new deal, but head coach Sean McVay pumped the breaks such talk this week.

Seahawks Cut DE Marcus Smith

August 17th, 2018 at 1:11pm CST by Zachary Links

The Seahawks have released defensive end Marcus Smith, the team announced. The move comes as a surprise since he was projected to be a part of their pass-rush rotation this season.

Smith missed the last two days of Seahawks practice as he dealt with what coach Pete Carroll termed as a family issue. In any case, he’ll be looking for a new club as the start of the season draws near.

Smith flamed out as a former first-round pick of the Eagles and was waived last summer. He signed on with the Seahawks and played a bit in a reserve role. In 252 snaps, Smith had 14 tackles and 2.5 sacks. In March, he was re-signed to a one-year deal worth up to $2.7MM.

The Seahawks project to start Frank Clark and Dion Jordan (if the stress issue in his leg heals up in time) in Week 1. With Smith out of the picture, they’ll be leaning a bit more heavily on third-round choice Rasheem Green for support. Braden Jackson and Quinton Jefferson are also among those pushing for time at the bookends.

In related moves, the Seahawks also waived Elijah Battle and signed running back Justin Stockton.

Seahawks Re-Sign DE Marcus Smith

March 22nd, 2018 at 4:01pm CST by Zachary Links

The Seahawks have re-signed defensive end Marcus Smith, as Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets. It’s a one-year deal worth up to $2.7MM.

Smith flamed out as a former first-round pick of the Eagles and was waived last summer. He signed on with the Seahawks and played a bit in a reserve role. In 252 snaps, Smith had 14 tackles and 2.5 sacks.

Exact terms of the deal are not yet known, but it stands to reason that the deal comes with a low base salary and little in the way of guarantees. There are incentives in place, however, that can provide Smith with a solid pay day if he performs. He’d also be in position to make more money next March if he can make some noise.

West Notes: Seahawks, Reddick, Chiefs

October 5th, 2017 at 7:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite failing to live up to his first-round status with the Eagles, Marcus Smith said he generated considerable interest during his brief stay in free agency. Prior to signing with the Seahawks in late July, Smith said he had offers from the Packers, Chiefs and Colts, via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. However, this Seahawks regime being interested in the then-Louisville product during the 2014 draft — with Condotta noting the team traded out of the first round after he went off the board to Philly at pick No. 26 — and former college assistant Clint Hurtt now Seattle’s defensive line coach made it a better fit than those other teams would have, Smith said.

Condotta adds Smith will now serve as the Seahawks’ first end off the bench now that Frank Clark will take the injured Cliff Avril‘s place in the starting lineup. Smith finished with 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble in his new team’s Sunday-night win over the Colts.

Here’s more out of the Pacific Northwest and other West locales in advance of Week 5.

Despite being hospitalized for what was viewed at the time as a scary injury, Rees Odhiambo may return to action without missing a game. Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable expects his starting left tackle to play on Sunday against the Rams, Condotta tweets. Odhiambo was hospitalized for what was called a chest contusion (or bruised heart) Sunday night. He’s the second Seattle left tackle starter to suffer a serious injury, joining George Fant (ACL tear) in that regard. But this serious-sounding setback may not force the Seahawks to make another change on their starting O-line.
One of the Cardinals‘ fallout solutions for replacing Markus Golden, lost for the season with a torn ACL, will be to experiment with first-round pick Haason Reddick at outside linebacker. Defensive coordinator James Bettcher said (via Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com) there are packages set to be unveiled Sunday featuring Reddick as an outside linebacker. Bettcher wouldn’t confirm if Reddick is being moved outside full-time, but Weinfuss notes these packages with the rookie on the edge will be part of the solution to replacing Golden. Reddick started Arizona’s first three games at inside linebacker but went to the bench after Deone Bucannon reclaimed his job in Week 4. Bucannon and veteran Karlos Dansby are the Cards’ starting inside ‘backers, and with the team not considering a Dwight Freeney reunion, it’s possible they’re looking at this outside-the-box solution seriously.
The Chiefs have added interesting wrinkles to their unorthodox offense this season, and while this misidirection-based scheme resulted in some zany college-style plays and has helped the team to 4-0, it’s also probably led Alex Smith being on the injury report with an ankle issue. While Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes the fifth-year Chiefs starting quarterback is expected to start Sunday against the Texans, past experience — i.e. playing well prior to a 2012 injury costing him his job once Colin Kaepernick emerged — should accelerate Smith’s drive to stay on the field. That said, the polish gap between Smith and Mahomes is likely considerable at this point. A permanent switch in 2017 — one Kansas City’s brass ruled out before the season — would be considerably different than Tom Savage losing his job to Deshaun Watson, especially considering how well Smith is playing thus far.
The Seahawks worked out guards Willie Beavers and Cole Toner, along with tackle D.J. Tialavea, Howard Balzer of SportsOnEarth tweets. The Bengals cut Toner from their practice squad late last month. Beavers has been on the workout circuit since the Patriots cut him from theirs in early September.
Holding an apparent defensive backs-only audition, the Raiders worked out several secondary cogs this week. Cornerback Brian Dixon, Demetrius McCray and Deji Olatoye participated. As did ex-Giants safety Mykkele Thompson, per Balzer (on Twitter). Dixon is the biggest name of this contingent, having spent three seasons with the Saints.
Linebacker Josh Keyes visited both the Chargers and Colts this week, Balzer tweets. These are the first known workouts for Keyes since the Falcons cut him prior to the season.

NFC West Notes: 49ers, Hyde, Seahawks

August 2nd, 2017 at 8:30am CST by Zachary Links

Although the 49ers have several key players, including safety Eric Reid and running back Carlos Hyde, entering their respective contract seasons, it doesn’t as though San Francisco has extension offers lined up for free agents-to-be, according to Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com.

“I would say that we’re always having internal discussions, Kyle (Shanahan) and myself and our staffs,” general manager John Lynch said. “And, we really try to be forward thinking looking out, not just this year but three to five years and saying, ‘OK, let’s look at the construct of our roster.’ But, our priority was let’s provide competition at each and every position. And so, that’s why we were so active this year to go out and to be able to really judge this and judge those guys in particular. There’s going to be a little more urgency with some of them, but we’re going to let this play out a little bit and see how they fit with what we want to do.”

Here’s more from the NFC West:

The Seahawks gave former Philadelphia first rounder Marcus Smith a one-year, $690K deal with zero guarantees, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The deal carries a maximum value of $1.44MM. Smith hasn’t done much in his three NFL seasons so far, but the Seahawks are hoping to get something out of him as a reserve.
Lance Dunbar was signed to serve as the backup to running back Todd Gurley, but given that the former Cowboy is on active/PUP and has no timetable to return from injury, Malcolm Brown is taking the lion’s share of work as the Rams‘ No. 2, as Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com writes. Brown, a 2015 undrafted free agent out of Texas, has managed only 22 carries in two pro seasons, but new Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay has been “pleasantly surprised” by Brown’s training camp work, per Gonzalez. The Rams could still look at external options — they’ve talked with free agent Rashad Jennings — but for now, Brown is on track to take over the backup role.

Dallas Robinson contributed to this post.

Seahawks To Sign DE Marcus Smith

July 28th, 2017 at 9:57am CST by Dallas Robinson

The Seahawks have reached an agreement with former first-round pick Marcus Smith, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Smith was waived by the Eagles earlier this week.

This isn’t the first time Seattle has taken a chance on a disappointing high draft choice, as the club agreed to deals with offensive tackle Luke Joeckel (No. 2 overall in 2013) and defensive end Dion Jordan (No. 3 overall in 2013) earlier this year. While Joeckel landed $8MM on a one-year pact, Jordan signed for the minimum salary with no guaranteed money. While financials haven’t been released on Smith’s contract, his deal will likely be more in the Jordan vein.

Smith, who made the transition from outside linebacker to defensive last season, has never broken out since being selected with the 26th pick in 2014. While he’s appeared in 37 career games over three seasons, he’s never made a start and has registered only four sacks. In 2016, the 25-year-old Smith played on only 20% of Philadelphia’s defensive snaps, but did see action on 40% of the team’s special teams plays.

Smith won’t be assured of a roster spot in Seattle, as he’ll compete with Jordan and Garrison Smith to earn a place as a reserve defensive end.

Eagles Release Marcus Smith

July 26th, 2017 at 1:47pm CST by Zachary Links

The Eagles have released former first-round defensive end Marcus Smith, according to a team announcement. Meanwhile, linebacker Steven Daniels has been inked to a three-year deal.

The Eagles declined Smith‘s fifth-year option for 2018 earlier this offseason, fueling speculation that he might not make the roster this year. By cutting Smith now, the Eagles have ostensibly given him a better chance to hook on elsewhere. The team also avoided paying out a $594K roster bonus on the third day of camp. By waiving Smith, the Eagles will clear roughly $1.5MM in cap space.

Smith, a Louisville product, hasn’t started in any of his 37 professional appearances and he has just four career sacks to his name. The 25-year-old is coming off his first 16-game season, but he mustered only 12 tackles and 2.5 sacks in his 268 defensive snaps. He was contributor on special teams, playing over 40% of the unit’s snaps, but that wasn’t enough to justify his salary.

The Eagles claimed Daniels off waivers from the rival Redskins in May only to waive him in early June. Nearly two months later, he has circled back to the Eagles. Nigel Bradham, Jordan Hicks, and Mychal Kendricks project as the starting linebackers for Philly with Kamu Grugier-Hill, Najee Goode, Joe Walker, Alex McCalister, fifth-round pick Nate Gerry, and Daniels among those pushing for reserve jobs.

East Notes: Eagles, Giants, Dolphins, Patriots

July 18th, 2017 at 7:54pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Eagles have already declined Marcus Smith‘s fifth-year option, meaning the former first-round pick likely won’t be with the club in 2018, but Smith may not even stick on Philadelphia’s roster for the upcoming season. Smith is scheduled to earn a $594K roster bonus on the third day of training cap, reports Jimmy Kempski of the Philly Voice, meaning the Eagles could conceivably cut ties with Smith before the 2017 campaign even starts. If Philadelphia waives Smith, who played only 20% of the club’s defensive snaps a year ago, it would clear nearly $1.5MM in cap space.

Here’s more from the NFL’s two East divisions:

Given that their roster is mostly set, the Giants may not have a need for a veteran addition, but the club could use more cornerback depth, opines James Kratch of NJ.com. New York doesn’t have significant talent behind its starting unit of Janoris Jenkins, Eli Apple, and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, as option such as Valentino Blake, Michael Hunter, and Donte Deayon are next in line. Free agents like Brandon Flowers and Alterraun Verner could be on the Giants’ radar, per Kratch, and I’d toss out Leon Hall — who spent the 2016 season with Big Blue — as another possibility.
The Dolphins face a “delicate balance” with safety T.J. McDonald, who is suspended for the first eight games of the season, as James Walker of ESPN.com writes. Miami signed McDonald as a free agent knowing he’d be banned for the first half of the year, but given that he’s expected to be inserted into the starting lineup when he’s eligible, McDonald needs practice reps in order to prepare. However, the Dolphins also need to prepare others, such as Nate Allen and Michael Thomas, who will start in McDonald’s absence.
Dont’a Hightower and David Harris are the only linebackers guaranteed to earn spots on the Patriots‘ roster, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. As such, veterans like Shea McClellin and Kyle Van Noy, plus undrafted free agent Harvey Langi (who received $115K in guarantees), aren’t assured on making the squad. Harris, meanwhile, likely won’t play an every-down role, but could act as a key backup to Hightower, whom New England wants healthy for the entire season.
Following Ezekiel Elliott‘s reported involvement in a barroom fight over the weekend, owner Jerry Jones said the Cowboys are still gathering facts on the incident, according to USA Today. “Like all of us, we do good some days and don’t do good the others,” Jones said. “That’s not to be confused with tolerating bad behavior or illegal behavior. That’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about just learning that your every move will be scrutinized and how in this day and time it will be looked at from many vantage points.” For what it’s worth, a witness said Elliott didn’t throw a punch in the brawl.