Seahawks bring back Cassius Marsh to help with pass rush

The Seahawks needed help with their pass rush for 2019. On Thursday, the team re-signed Cassius Marsh in hopes he can be productive.

The Seahawks re-signed defensive end/linebacker Cassius Marsh on Thursday. Marsh was last with Seattle in 2016. After that season, Seattle traded Marsh to the New England Patriots for a fifth round pick that turned out to be offensive lineman Jamarco Jones. In 2017, Marsh played for the San Francisco 49ers and started three game. He also got 5.5 sacks. And that’s the important part.

Bringing back Marsh at what is expected to be a relatively low salary is a win-win for the Seahawks. Marsh is never going to be a Pro Bowl player. He isn’t even starter-worthy, especially with who Seattle has at linebacker. Marsh could simply play defensive end full-time, but he shouldn’t be expected to start there either.

Still, Marsh was signed for a reason. He has the ability to get to the opposing quarterback. According to Pro Football Focus, Marsh was right in the middle of quality edge rushers in 2018. Again, that isn’t Pro Bowl quality but it might be good enough to help Seattle.

Marsh is basically taking the place of Dion Jordan. Jordan remains a free agent. Marsh, though, stays healthier even if his upside is more limited than Jordan’s. Seattle needs players to stay on the field and Marsh can do that.

Another excellent thing about the Marsh signing is that Seattle won’t lose a comp pick next year for doing so. Had Marsh been a free agent solely they would have. But the 49ers released Marsh to make room for Dee Ford, whom the 49ers traded for. This means signing Marsh will only cost Seattle whatever it took to sign him with no collateral damage.

Now Marsh just has to show he can get at least 5 or 6 sacks in 2019, too. It would be worth it to him for his next contract after 2019. And the Seahawks need him to get there because they are running out of options to help Frank Clark and company.