Emerging as Playmaker for Seahawks, D.J. Reed Stakes Claim to Starting Role

After suffering a torn pectoral muscle during an offseason workout and being waived with an injury designation by the 49ers, D.J. Reed feared his 2020 campaign was over before it even started.

Despite facing a potentially lengthy recovery, however, the Seahawks surprisingly put in a waiver claim on the third-year defensive back. At the time, given the nature of his injury and the possibility he might not play at all this year, general manager John Schneider looked to be making a future-driven move adding Reed to the mix.

But much to the surprise of Schneider and coach Pete Carroll, Reed made a rapid recovery and returned to the practice field after a Week 6 bye. Two weeks later, the former Kansas State standout made his team debut and has proven himself to be an indispensable asset for the Seahawks defensively, starting games at both outside cornerback spots as well as nickel cornerback.

"This is John Schneider working his magic," Carroll said following Sunday's win over the Washington Football Team. "I can't tell you enough, John has done this so many times. He realized that there was going to be a big loop in there where we weren't going to have him available. He's a really good player; we could take him off their roster and put him on our roster and wait it out with the thought that, if we needed him down the stretch, he would be available as a nickel and potentially other places."

When Seattle initially claimed Reed off waivers, the organization viewed him as a potential upgrade at the nickel cornerback spot down the road. According to Carroll, they weren't necessarily thinking about him as an option to compete for playing time at outside cornerback.

But with Shaquill Griffin, Tre Flowers, Ugo Amadi, and Quinton Dunbar all missing time with various injuries over the past month and a half, Reed has proven he's more than just a versatile reserve or a special teams player. Seeing snaps all over the field, he's arguably been Seattle's best cornerback over the past five weeks and also brought juice to the team's kickoff and punt return units.

Turning in his best performance yet in Sunday's 20-15 win over Washington, Reed was targeted nine times in coverage by quarterback Dwayne Haskins and allowed just four receptions for 15 yards. He produced three pass deflections, including swatting away a potential touchdown to star receiver Terry McLaurin in the end zone, and after baiting the second-year signal caller into a bad throw, he reeled in his second interception on a deep ball intended for receiver Cam Sims.

"I love it out there," Reed said. "That's what I played my whole life, played it in college at a high level. Being 5-9, it's a statement for me, because corners that are 5-9 are not corners anymore, they're playing the slot, so I feel like I've got to make a statement."

For the season, Reed has already set career-highs with 49 tackles, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and six passes defensed. Though he doesn't fit the prototypical model of a Seahawks outside cornerback due to his lack of height and arm length, he carries the chip on his shoulder Carroll and Schneider covet while possessing the footwork and athleticism to compensate.

When asked about Reed not fitting the mold of a typical Seattle outside cornerback such as Richard Sherman or even Griffin and Dunbar, Carroll referenced his time coaching at NC State and having 6-foot-2 cornerback Perry Williams and 5-foot-7 Donnie LeGrande starting opposite of one another. His point? The Seahawks can't be "stubborn" believing every player at each position has to fit a certain body type or play style.

"He's just a different style player," Carroll said of Reed. "His feet are just lightning fast and his athleticism is just - he's so sudden. He can make up for - he has to stay out of situations where he gets pushed around or shoved around. He's 183 pounds, but he knows how to do it. I'm really fired up about his play."

Considering Reed's stellar performance, even with Dunbar and Flowers close to returning from injured reserve and potentially available for next week's game against the Rams, Carroll doesn't sound interested in making a change at right cornerback - at least not yet.

"He's playing good football," Carroll remarked. "I like all the activity and the consistency that he's shown, and he's tackling pretty well. He's just a playmaker. He has the lead to hold that spot at least going into this week. We should get Tre back this week. Quinton practiced all last week. He should be in better shape for this week, we'll see how that all works out. We're getting stronger."

As for Reed, he's motivated to continue maximizing every opportunity presented to him during a season that nearly didn't happen due to his injury. If he hadn't been claimed by Seattle or any other team, he would have reverted to San Francisco's injured reserve list and been sidelined until 2021.

Grateful to be back on the field contributing for his new team any way he can, a motivated and confident Reed has plenty to prove as the Seahawks push for an NFC West title next week and aim to do damage in the postseason next month. In the process, he may be carving out a long-term role with the team different than the one Schneider envisioned five months ago.

"With this torn pec, I tell myself sometimes, 'I wasn't supposed to be playing this year.' If nobody would have picked me up - it was the Bills, Texans, and Seahawks that showed interest - I would be at home right now and nobody would know what I'm capable of. It's crazy how God works, because I knew I was capable of this, I did it in college, and I knew I could do it in the league."