GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – JANUARY 12: Head coach Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks celebrates after a touchdown during the second half against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Lambeau Field on January 12, 2020 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Pete Carroll is adding to his defense by bringing back a former Packers first-round pick.
Damarious Randall is returning to the Seattle Seahawks on a new contract, but he will be playing a different position in Pete Carroll’s secondary in 2021.
Randall played in 10 games for the 2020 Seahawks as a safety, a position he had played stemming back to his two-year run with the Cleveland Browns from 2018 to 2019. When he was drafted in the first round out of Arizona State by the Green Bay Packers in 2015, Randall was a cornerback. Entering his age-29 season, Carroll is expecting big things out of him with Seattle.
This is a savvy move for the Seahawks to make. It helps them offset losing both Shaquill Griffin and Quinton Dunbar to the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Detroit Lions in their respective free agencies. Randall was at his best in Green Bay playing cornerback. Given that he will be playing for a great defensive mind in Carroll once again, but in a role best suited for his skill set, this can work.
Seattle Seahawks: Re-signing Damarious Randall is a smart business decision
Carroll knows that he will be able to coach up Randall in this new role of his in the Seattle secondary. While he is probably not going to ever live up to the hype of being a first-round pick out of Arizona State, Randall could argue that he is in his best position to succeed at the professional level in this system. Playing alongside all-world safety Jamal Adams will be a huge help as well.
What this means for other teams who used to employ Randall is that he was either playing out of position in some cases or was not coached up to the level that would have brought the very best out of his unique skill set. Though he is an undervalued signing in Seattle, do not expect him to approach anything to a Pro Bowl level in this scheme. However, he will be a valued contributor.
Randall’s success with Carroll may make the Packers, Browns and Las Vegas Raiders look bad.