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Brady HendersonESPN
The Seattle Seahawks are bringing back versatile defensive back DeShawn Shead, a former special teams standout and starter in the Legion of Boom.
Shead’s deal is for one year and the veteran minimum salary, a source told ESPN.
The Seahawks announced Shead’s return Saturday, along with three other roster moves. They signed undrafted rookie linebacker Ja’Wuan James, who took part in their rookie minicamp on a tryout basis. Seattle placed linebacker Emmanuel Ellerbee on injured reserve and waived receiver Caleb Scott with a non-football injury designation.
Shead, 30, became one of several UDFA success stories with the Seahawks after going undrafted out of Portland State in 2012. He was a special teams captain in 2016 and played every position in Seattle’s secondary at one point or another during his six seasons with the Seahawks, including a stint as their starting right cornerback from November of 2015 until the playoffs the following season, when he tore his ACL.
That kept Shead on the physically unable to perform list for all but two games in 2017, which technically meant that his contract was to toll into 2018. The Seahawks released him instead. Shead’s agent, Cameron Foster, told ESPN at the time that general manager John Schneider had promised Shead he would be a free agent even though the rolling rule meant he would still be under contract with Seattle, which was the reason for his release.
Shead signed with the Detroit Lions and appeared in 12 games with one start before going on IR in December.
Shead worked out for the New Orleans Saints last week.
It’s not clear which position the Seahawks have in mind for Shead. Two of their safeties, rookie second-round pick Marquise Blair (hamstring) and Lano Hill (hip), are sidelined with injuries. Shead started at strong safety for one of the two games in the beginning of the 2015 season that Kam Chancellor missed while holding out.