LOCALS IN THE NFL
Bumpus: Why Marquise Blair Has Gained The Most Out Of Seahawks Camp

SEATTLE, Wash. – Along with the pass rush ā or lack thereof ā on the Seahawksā defense in 2019, another commonly concern regarding that side of the ball was why Seattle didnāt play more nickel defense despite the teamās struggle in the against the pass.
The Seahawks, when they did go with five defensive backs ā which was roughly 30 percent of the time, far and away the least in the NFL ā had players like Jamar Taylor and Akeem King man that spot until late in the year when rookie Ugo Amadi got the role. Seattle still opted to use three linebackers or ābase defenseā well over half of the time.
Entering the offseason, head coach Pete Carroll said theĀ nickel corner position was Amadiās to lose. And even before the Seahawks acquiredĀ All-Pro safety Jamal Adams, Carroll said the team would experiment with 2019 rookie safetyĀ Marquise BlairĀ at the nickel spot. Now, it looks like Blair may be the nickel corner the Seahawks were desperately missing in 2019.
Former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus joined 710 ESPN SeattleāsĀ Danny and GallantĀ and said that Blair has gotten more out of the Seahawksā abbreviated training camp than any of his teammates, and that he could be a real difference maker for a team thatās looking to rebound after fielding one of the worst defenses in franchise history.
āHe is going to be the reason why you get out of that base defense,ā Bumpus said. āEveryone wants to see the Hawks play more nickel, they didnāt play nickel last year because they didnāt have the guys. I am confident that Marquise Blair can be that nickel spot guy.ā
Blair is also coming off a stellar showing in the Seahawksā second mock game on Wednesday, where he was perhaps the gameās best defensive player.
āHe had two picks during the mock (game) and one of them was off a deflection by (Pro Bowl cornerback) Shaquill Griffin ā a name that you also want to hearĀ when it comes to making playsĀ ā and the other one was just my boy (undrafted WSU rookie quarterback) Anthony Gordon closing his eyes, making a wish and tossing the ball up and (Blair) just made a play,ā Bumpus said. ā ⦠People are going to say āit was a mock game, heās supposed to do that,ā but what if he doesnāt make those plays? What are we saying? Weāre still addressing it, weāre still saying he needs to step up. He is doing what he has to do.ā
Paul Gallant,Ā who was also at the mock game, asked if Blair had been showing that kind of ability in practice, as Gordon had a rough game overall. Bumpus said Blairās good practices carried over to a game situation.
āWhat Iāve seen out of Blair is heās just in the right position. Heās where heās supposed to be and he looks confident,ā he said. āHe doesnāt seem like a guy whoās second-guessing himself or whoās hesitating, he looks like a guy whoās playing fast and who is attacking the football when itās in the air and thatās what you need. Heās playing a spot heās never played before so thereās going to be some adjustments there, but Iām loving what I see ⦠Heās doing everything he needs to do.ā
Listen to the full second hour of Fridayās Danny and GallantĀ at this link.