Seattle Seahawks: Cassius Marsh, Nate Orchard address depth issues

Last week, the Seattle Seahawks signed defensive ends Cassius Marsh and Nate Orchard, addressing the team’s depth issues on the edge.

The Seattle Seahawks have signed two defensive ends, likely ending their search for depth at the position. The team is bringing back Cassius Marsh, who last played in Seattle back in 2016. The other defensive end, per Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times, is Nate Orchard.

Orchard is a less successful pro than Marsh, but is still extremely athletic and is only 26 years old. Ideally, these two signings will solidify the defensive line as the Seahawks try to bang out a long-term deal with Frank Clark.

Marsh was selected by the Seahawks back in the fourth round of the 2014 draft. He only appeared in five games as a rookie, but took on a larger role in his second a third season. In 2016, Marsh recorded his first sack and added two more, giving him three on the year.

While it looked like Marsh was set to take on a bigger role in Seattle, the team ended up trading him to the New England Patriots for a 2018 fifth-round selection. Marsh disliked playing for the Patriots, though, as he stated that the team had no fun and added that he even thought about not playing football anymore because of how much he hated the situation.

The Patriots waived Marsh in November 2017 and the San Francisco 49ers claimed him shortly afterward. Marsh set career highs in several categories in 2018 with the 49ers, including combined tackles (38), tackles for loss (seven), quarterback hits (14), and sacks (5.5). Now, he’s returning to the team that drafted him on a one-year deal.

As for Orchard, he has spent time at outside linebacker and defensive end since entering the NFL. He was a second round pick by the Cleveland Browns back in 2015, but things never really worked out in Cleveland. Orchard’s rookie year was his best as a pro. He racked up 36 combined tackles, four passes defensed, an interception and three sacks in 15 games.

Unfortunately, Orchard wasn’t allowed to build on his rookie campaign in 2016 because he was injured and placed on IR in October. By 2017, Orchard was a rotational player and no longer viewed as a starter. The Browns cut him in September 2018. He appeared in four games last season, three with the Bills and one with the Chiefs.

Orchard was a tremendous player in college. He recorded 18.5 sacks in his final year at Utah and won the Ted Hendricks Award, which goes to the nation’s best defensive end. While he won’t be reviving his career as a starter in Seattle, hopefully he can find a way to contribute along the line and stick with the team.

Now that Seattle has signed two edge rushers to add depth in that area, it is unlikely the team will pursue Nick Perry, who visited the Seahawks before these two signings were announced. The signings will also have draft implications, as the team should pursue other needs now in the early and middle rounds. Besides relying on Marsh and Orchard, the team will continue to work on developing second year pass rushers, Rasheem Green and Jacob Martin.