DeShawn Shead might have re-signed with Seahawks to be a safety

The Seahawks need safety help. DeShawn Shead used to play corner for Seattle but he might have been re-signed to play safety.

The Seahawks might have found an answer to who will help at safety in an unexpected location. When former-Seahawk DeShawn Shead re-signed with Seattle this weekend it was expected, I assume, that he would play cornerback. This was the position he used to play in Seattle. But this might not be the case.

His first day back with Seattle in training camp Shead was getting a lot of reps at safety. Shead has the size to be a safety, but maybe not the speed. If he were to join the safety rotation alongside Bradley McDougald, Tedric Thompson, Lano Hill and Marquise Blair, it is likely that Shead would be a free safety.

I base this on the fact that McDougald is by far the most proven and best safety on the Seattle roster currently. McDougald has said he prefers to play strong safety so he can play inside the box and help defend against the run. And why not? McDougald would be either the best strong or free safety Seattle has so let him make the choice.

My fear is that Shead simply doesn’t have the speed to be a free safety. In fact, Shead might be a better nickelback than a safety but is probably too big. Shead doesn’t have a problem with tackling people but his range is lacking. He can cover one side of the field but not the entire field deep.

Still, the Seahawks coaches know a lot better than I about who can play what. Likely, they are simply feeling Shead out to see if he can play safety and how well. This says more about the lack of confidence Pete Carroll has in his current safety rotation than in Shead’s ability, however. And that is worrisome going into the 2019 season.