Seahawks expected to sign ex-Eagles DE Marcus Smith; Kevin Pierre-Louis traded to Chiefs

The Seahawks are expected to sign free-agent defensive end Marcus Smith, a source has confirmed. The team also made a trade with the Chiefs Friday morning, sending Kevin Pierre-Louis to Kansas City for D.J. Alexander in a swap of backup linebackers.

The 25-year-old Smith was waived earlier this week by the Eagles, who drafted him in the first round out of Louisville in 2014. He produced only 23 tackles and four sacks over three seasons.

Smith’s agreement with Seattle was first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter while the Chiefs announced the Pierre-Louis/Alexander trade. The moves come two days before the Seahawks’ first practice of training camp.

O’Neil: Pierre-Louis never became what Seattle envisioned

It’s not immediately clear what role the Seahawks have in mind for Smith. Listed at 6 feet 3 and 251 pounds, he could compete for the pass-rushing role Seattle had in mind for Dion Jordan. Jordan remains on Seattle’s roster, but his chances of making the team took a hit when he did very little work over the offseason because of what head coach Pete Carroll said was a preexisting knee injury, which required surgery.

The Seahawks also have a competition at strong-side linebacker, where Michael Wilhoite and Terence Garvin are vying to start. Wilhoite missed much of the offseason program with a quad injury. It’s possible that Smith and/or Alexander could join that mix.

A corresponding move to clear a spot for Smith on Seattle’s 90-man offseason may not come until this weekend, when his signing becomes official.

Alexander, 25, was a fifth-round pick out of Oregon State in 2015. He made the Pro Bowl last season as a special teams player and was third on the Chiefs in special teams snaps. He’s made one career start.

Pierre-Louis has had a similar role in Seattle, making one start over his three seasons while mainly playing special teams. But he’s entering the final year of his rookie contract whereas Alexander (6-2, 233) has two years left on his deal. So the Seahawks are essentially swapping out players with similar profiles but gaining another season of club control with Alexander.

Pierre-Louis never realized the potential the Seahawks saw in him when they chose him in the fourth round in 2014. He impressed Seattle’s coaches enough entering his second season that there was talk of working him into the rotation at linebacker, but he struggled in a spot start that year and only played sparingly on defense after that.

The trade marks more turnover for the Seahawks at linebacker. They signed Wilhoite and Garvin in free agency to compete for the starting job held last season by Mike Morgan, who wasn’t re-signed. Seattle also added Arthur Brown as a backup middle linebacker.