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Jeff Fuller and Cameron Marshall are off to the NFL with the Seattle Seahawks

Calgary Stampeders' Jeff Fuller braces himself for a tackle from Montreal Alouettes' Jonathan Hefney during their CFL football game in Calgary, Alberta, August 1, 2015. REUTERS/Mike Sturk (REUTERS)

A couple of CFL free agents landed outside of the league Thursday, with Calgary Stampeders' wide receiver Jeff Fuller Jr. and Winnipeg Blue Bombers' running back Cameron Marshall both signing with the Seattle Seahawks. Both are promising young players who hadn't fully reached CFL stardom yet, but had shown substantial potential. Now, they'll have a chance to turn that potential into a spot on a NFL roster.

Fuller has an interesting background, as he's the son of former San Francisco 49ers safety Jeff Fuller Sr., who won three Super Bowls with the team but suffered a career-ending spinal injury from a hit in a 1989 game. The elder Fuller was in the news last month thanks to Daniel Brown's San Jose Mercury News piece on former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr., who paid Fuller's salary in full for the 1990 season even after his injury and set up an annuity to take care of him, one of the many remarkable things DeBartolo did for 49ers' players and staff. (He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a contributor last week.

The younger Fuller went into football despite his father's injury, following his dad's footsteps by playing at Texas A&M, and his father (who still has an immobile right side and torn nerves) watching him with pride. Despite a solid career with the Aggies, he went undrafted by the NFL in 2012, but caught on with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent for a season and the next year's camp before getting cut in August 2013 and heading to the CFL with Calgary the next month.

Fuller was only on the Stampeders' practice roster at first, but worked his way up to the active roster late in the 2013 season and made 15 catches for 254 yards in just three games. Injuries limited him the next two years, but he had some very effective moments when he did play, hauling in 29 receptions for 378 yards and five touchdowns in eight games in 2014 and notching 47 catches for 619 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games this past season. We haven't really seen what he can do over a full season, but he's just 25, and he has NFL size (6'4'', 223 pounds) and good speed, so it's understandable why the Seahawks took a flyer on him.

Marshall's story is somewhat similar. He had an impressive career at Arizona State, collecting 2,700 rushing yards in four years (seventh in school history) and 38 rushing touchdowns (second in school history), went undrafted in 2013, but also wound up signing with Miami. He was on and off the Dolphins' roster for a couple of years, then ended up in Winnipeg near the end of 2014. He found a larger role last season, playing the part of power back in the Blue Bombers' offence and taking on more prominence after Paris Cotton suffered a season-ending broken arm Aug. 9. He finished the year with 614 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 141 carries (4.4 yards per carry) and added 32 receptions for 378 yards and two touchdowns.

That's not a particularly outstanding CFL season, but it's not a bad one, and Marshall's mix of good size (5'11'', 211 pounds), decent speed (he was clocked at 4.54 seconds in a Pro Day 40), rushing and receiving talent, and age (he's just 24) may be what made the Seahawks take a look at him. There could be an opportunity there, as Marshawn Lynch's retirement means their backfield's a little more in flux. Here's a look at Marshall's CFL highlights:

These moves by Fuller and Marshall show the CFL to NFL pipeline's still in good shape and can work even for those without exceptional CFL stats as long as they're young and have potential, and that's positive for the league. Sure, the league would love to keep Marshall and Fuller around, but these moves are further evidence the CFL can be a viable gateway to the NFL, and that's vital for attracting other top talent. Fuller and Marshall may not stick south of the border, and we could see them in the CFL again, but even if we don't, they're still benefiting the league as alumni, proving it's a pathway to the bright lights that can work for promising young players initially overlooked by the NFL.