Seahawks should bring back a blast from the past: Bradley McDougald

With Jamal Adams lost for the season, the Seattle Seahawks could look to their past roster to help take up the slack. No, we can’t get Kam Chancellor back, but we could see Bradley McDougald again. He’s definitely better than some alternatives.

The injury bug has definitely been busy in Seattle this year. As if it hasn’t been bad enough, strong safety Jamal Adams is now out for the year. He joins Chris Carson, Tre Brown, Marquise Blair, and Ben Burr-Kirven in the Seahawks “see ya next year” parade. Yes, injuries are part of the game, all good 12s know that. Adams’ stats don’t measure up to his first year in Seattle, but those are still some big cleats to fill.

For now, we’ll see Ryan Neal step into the starting safety role. I agree with Lee Vowell in his assessment that Neal will be fine as the starting safety. No, he isn’t the same type of player as Adams at all. That’s okay, as Adams wasn’t being used the same way he was last year, either, as Lee points out.

I’m not concerned about Neal. It’s who steps in behind him that’s my concern. After Neal, we have Ugo Amadi. No worries there, except that Amadi has been the primary slot corner for the Seahawks. As if you’d forget, Tre Brown and Marquise Blair are already out for the season. Nigel Warrior was just activated for the game against the Football Team.

Bradley McDougald should be re-signed by the Seattle Seahawks

He doesn’t exactly have a lot of experience, as until two weeks ago, he’d spent his career either on the practice squad or injured reserve. The Hawks signed Gavin Heslop from their practice squad for their game against the Texans.

I don’t know about you, 12s, but that looks pretty thin. Apparently, Pete Carroll thinks so too. Reporting for The News Tribune, Gregg Bell wrote that the Seahawks have given a lot of thought to bringing back former safety Bradley McDougald to the fold. Ironic, as of course McDougald was part of the trade package that brought Adams to Seattle from New York. McDougald only played seven games for the Jets before he went down with a shoulder injury.

That’s irony number two. He appeared in just two games for the Titans this season. In a third ironic twist, McDougald was cut by Tennessee after facing none other than the Seahawks. He surrendered a 51-yard bomb to Tyler Lockett and was out of a job the next day. All I have to say is if you’re going to cut every D-back who gives up a huge play to Tyler Lockett, you’re going to be out of safeties and corners really fast.

As noted by Corbin Smith on SI’s Fan Nation, McDougald isn’t the only possible former Seahawks safety available. The two names mentioned were Lano Hill and – brace yourself, 12s – Tedric Thompson. Don’t worry; I haven’t found anywhere that Pete mentioned Thompson by name. It’s okay, 12s, it really is. You can breathe again, and Pete doesn’t need a cognitive evaluation.

As for Bradley McDougald, I’d love to see him back in Seattle. He may have lost a step, but as Smith writes, he knows the system and can play either safety spot. Unlike Thompson, he can play those positions well, too. No knock on Hill, but even banged up and “old” at 31, McDougald is the better player.

For now, the Seahawks will depend on Ryan Neal to step in and step up. He’ll be more than fine, and Amadi will be as well if he spells Neal. It’s after that that things get dicey. That’s exactly why I’d like to see McDougald back in navy, gray, and a splash of Action Green. He was excellent in his first tour with the Hawks, and he could be nearly as valuable as a backup this time around. As for Chancellor….yes, I think we’d all be okay with getting The Enforcer back, but that’s not going to happen. Now, as a coach…we can only dream right, 12s?