Marquise Damond Blair (born July 18, 1997) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

Early life

Blair attended Wooster High School in

Wooster, Ohio Wooster ( ) is a city in Wayne County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Ohio, the city lies approximately south-southwest of Cleveland, southwest of Akron and west of Canton. The population was 27,232 at the ...

. 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.

College career

Blair attended

Dodge City Community College Dodge City Community College (DC3, DCCC) is a public community college in Dodge City, Kansas, United States. History Campus Founded in 1935, Dodge City Community College was located on the third floor of the Senior High School Building at 1601 ...

before transferring to the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

after the 2016 season. he was a first-team junior college

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

selection he had over 100 tackles, 3 sacks, and 4

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

s. 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

Seattle Seahawks (first stint)

Blair was selected by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

in the second round, 47th overall, of the

2019 NFL draft The 2019 NFL draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville. The first round was held ...

2020

Blair started the

2020 NFL season The 2020 NFL season was the 101st season of the National Football League (NFL). The regular season started with the NFL Kickoff Game on September 10, in which defending Super Bowl LIV champion Kansas City defeated Houston. The playoffs were ...

being named the starting nickelback for the Seahawks, switching over from his original position at safety. 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 The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

and helped the team secure a 38–25 victory at the

Mercedes-Benz Stadium Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a retractable roof multi-purpose stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it is the home of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) and Atlanta ...

. In the second game of the season against the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

, Blair had to step into the role of free safety after starting free safety

Quandre Diggs Quandre Diggs (born January 22, 1993) is an American professional football safety. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, and was selected by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL draft. He played his first two years ...

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 The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. In ...

. He was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

on September 23.

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

Carolina Panthers

On September 5, 2022, Blair signed with the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

of the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

. 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 The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

practice squad. He was released on December 13. On February 9, 2023, Blair signed a reserve/futures deal with the Eagles. 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. He was released on August 27, and re-signed to the practice squad. He was released on September 24.

New York Jets

On October 17, 2024, Blair was signed to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

practice squad. He was released on November 5.

References

External links

Utah Utes bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blair, Marquise 1997 births Living people Sportspeople from Wooster, Ohio Players of American football from Ohio American football safeties Carolina Panthers players Dodge City Conquistadors football players Philadelphia Eagles players Seattle Seahawks players Utah Utes football players New York Jets players