Marquise Blair

Marquise Blair
Personal information
Born: (1997-07-18) July 18, 1997 (age 27)
Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:196 lb (89 kg)
Career information
High school:Wooster (OH)
College:
Position:Safety / Slot cornerback
NFL draft:2019 / round: 2 / pick: 47
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2024
Total tackles:52
Forced fumbles:3
Pass deflections:3
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Marquise Damond Blair (born July 18, 1997) is an American professional football safety who is a free agent. He played college football at Utah.[1]

Early years

Blair attended Wooster High School in Wooster, Ohio. He was a First-team Division II all-state as a senior at Wooster High (Ohio). Also named first-team Division II All-Ohio and Ohio Cardinal Conference Defensive Player of the Year.[2]

College career

Blair attended Dodge City Community College before transferring to the University of Utah after the 2016 season. he was a first-team junior college All-American selection he had over 100 tackles, 3 sacks, and 4 interceptions. He was an all-conference pick for Dodge City as a freshman.

The former first-team All-State pick in Ohio eventually worked his way into the starting lineup with the Utes in 2017, starting 6 of 9 games and making over 48 tackles, three for loss, and two pass breakups. before suffering a season-ending injury against UCLA. As a senior, He started in all 14 games with 12 starts in 2018, garnering second-team All-Pac-12 honors along with 17 of his teammates. He finished the year with 59 stops, two for loss, two interceptions, two pass breakups, and a forced fumble.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
6 ft 1+1⁄4 in
(1.86 m) 		195 lb
(88 kg) 		30+3⁄4 in
(0.78 m) 		8+1⁄4 in
(0.21 m)		 4.48 s 1.55 s 2.63 s 4.49 s 6.84 s 35.0 in
(0.89 m)		 10 ft 5 in
(3.18 m)
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[3][4]

Seattle Seahawks (first stint)

Blair was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the second round, 47th overall, of the 2019 NFL draft.[5]

2020

Blair started the 2020 NFL season being named the starting nickelback for the Seahawks, switching over from his original position at safety.[6] He started the season by having seven tackles (four solo) in the Seahawks' first game of the season. Blair also generated a forced fumble in the game that was against the Atlanta Falcons and helped the team secure a 38–25 victory at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. In the second game of the season against the New England Patriots, Blair had to step into the role of free safety after starting free safety Quandre Diggs was ejected for a helmet-to-helmet hit during the game. Blair's season was cut short a few plays later when a teammate rolled onto his leg following a tackle resulting in Blair tearing his anterior cruciate ligament.[7] He was placed on injured reserve on September 23.[8]

2021

Blair entered the 2021 season as the backup free safety to Quandre Diggs. He played in six games before suffering a knee injury in Week 7. He was placed on injured reserve on November 12, 2021.[9]

On August 30, 2022, Blair was waived by the Seahawks.[10]

Carolina Panthers

On September 5, 2022, Blair signed with the practice squad of the Carolina Panthers.[11] He was promoted to the active roster on November 6, 2022, before being released the following day.

Philadelphia Eagles

On November 16, 2022, Blair signed with the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad.[12] He was released on December 13.

On February 9, 2023, Blair signed a reserve/futures deal with the Eagles.[13] He was released by the team on April 24, with an NFI designation.

Seattle Seahawks (second stint)

On July 26, 2024, Blair was signed by the Seattle Seahawks.[14] He was released on August 27, and re-signed to the practice squad.[15][16] He was released on September 24.[17]

New York Jets

On October 17, 2024, Blair was signed to the New York Jets practice squad.[18] He was released on November 5.

References

  1. ^ Kragthorpe, Kurt (April 24, 2019). "Marquise Blair is Utah's top NFL draft prospect, as Chase Hansen's health makes him a mystery". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  2. ^ Fentress, Aaron (May 7, 2019). "Marquise Blair bashes his way from Wooster to the Seattle Seahawks".
  3. ^ "Marquise Blair Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved November 9, 2019.
  4. ^ "2019 Draft Scout Marquise Blair, Utah NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  5. ^ Boyle, John (April 26, 2019). "Seahawks Select Utah Safety Marquise Blair In Second Round Of 2019 NFL Draft". Seattle Seahawks. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
  6. ^ Bell, Gregg (August 16, 2020). "By popular demand--and Seahawks need--Marquise Blair gets his chance as new nickel back". The News Tribune.
  7. ^ Mathews, Liz (September 22, 2020). "Seahawks Wire".
  8. ^ Alper, Josh (September 23, 2020). "Seahawks put Bruce Irvin, Marquise Blair and Phillip Dorsett on IR". NBCSports.com. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  9. ^ Boyle, John (November 12, 2021). "Seahawks Activate Russell Wilson & Dee Eskridge From Injured Reserve". Seahawks.com.
  10. ^ Boyle, John (August 30, 2022). "Seahawks Make Roster Moves, Establish Initial 2022 53-Man Roster". Seahawks.com.
  11. ^ "Panthers sign veteran defensive end Henry Anderson". Panthers.com. September 5, 2022.
  12. ^ Bowman, Paul (November 16, 2022). "Eagles Add Two To IR Amid Flurry Of Moves". SportsTalkPhilly.com.
  13. ^ Erby, Glenn (February 9, 2023). "Eagles to sign Marquise Blair to reserve/future deal". Eagles Wire. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  14. ^ Boyle, John (July 26, 2024). "Seahawks Sign S Marquise Blair". Seahawks.com. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  15. ^ Boyle, John (August 27, 2024). "Seahawks Make Roster Moves, Establish Initial 2024 53-Man Roster". Seahawks.com. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
  16. ^ Boyle, John (August 28, 2024). "Seahawks Sign 15 To Practice Squad, Including Veteran Cornerback Artie Burns". Seahawks.com. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
  17. ^ Boyle, John (September 24, 2024). "Seahawks Sign CB Tyler Hall & NT Matt Gotel To Practice Squad". Seahawks.com. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
  18. ^ Greenberg, Ethan (October 17, 2024). "Jets Sign S Marquise Blair to Practice Squad". NewYorkJets.com.