Marcus Smith probably won’t be an Eagle for much longer
By Ryan Quigley
Marcus Smith is bad and his days with the Eagles are pretty much over.
The Philadelphia Eagles have had their fair share of first-round failures in recent years. Danny Watkins and Nelson Agholor immediately come to mind. But no one takes the cake quite as much as the bust of all busts, Marcus Smith.
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Selected with the No. 26 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, Smith has failed to meet any of the Eagles’ expectations and, more likely than not, will be cut by the team this offseason. By cutting Smith, the Eagles will save $1,483,515 in cap space, per Spotrac.
In three seasons with the Eagles, Smith has registered 23 tackles and just four sacks. He has yet to start a single game since being drafted.
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Earlier this month, the Eagles chose not to exercise Smith’s fifth-year option. Clearly the Eagles seem pretty much done with Smith. If not then, they should be now. Smith has been absent from OTAs and it’s unknown when, or if, he will finally make an appearance.
Even if Smith has been showing up to OTAs, though, would there even be a spot for him on the final roster? The Eagles signed Chris Long in free agency and drafted Derek Barnett in the first round of this year’s draft. Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry obviously aren’t going anywhere. For a guy who hardly even sees the field, why would he be gifted a roster spot?
Jimmy Kempski of PhillyVoice believes Smith’s departure is basically set in stone. At this point, it’s hard not to agree. The 25-year-old defensive end has worn out his welcome with the Eagles and it would be pretty surprising for him to remain on the team in 2017.