Former Seahawk Marcus Smith, once retired, reappears on NFL radar

The Seattle Seahawks took several hits to their pass rush depth this spring. First, Cliff Avril was forced to retire. Then, Michael Bennett was traded to the Eagles. Then, Dion Jordan suffered a knee injury on the first day of camp, and it was revealed Frank Clark was recovering from surgery of his own. And, halfway through camp, Marcus Smith retired under vague conditions.

Once thought of as a bust, Smith revived his career somewhat with Seattle during the 2017 season. Following the season, Smith was re-signed to a modest $1.425 million deal and was expected to be a part of the rotation.

Midway through August, Smith missed consecutive days of camp with what Pete Carroll described as “a family issue.” The next day, the Seahawks had released Smith, with Carroll citing personal reasons as the cause of the release—and that Smith understood.

Just a few days later, we gained some clarity on Smith’s situation, with NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport claiming Smith was leaning towards retirement. In the months following his release, Smith didn’t workout for any teams, and he was presumably retired.

However, on Tuesday, Smith reappeared, in a workout for the Jets:

Smith wasn’t signed by New York following the workout, and it’s fair to wonder if he is in football shape, having last played at the end of the 2017 season. But, his re-emergence would indicate Smith isn’t done yet.

With K.J. Wright still dealing with a knee injury, and Mychal Kendricks not allowed to return for another month, Smith could become an option in Seattle. He was deployed at SAM linebacker in 2017 and in the first two weeks of training camp, and could fill in there should Barkevious Mingo be forced back to the weakside.

Ideally, Wright returns to full health and the level he’s played at for so long. But with the veteran linebacker slowed, a move could be on the horizon.