ASHBURN — Perry Fewell was almost certain Will Blackmon was going to start the regular season as a member of the Seattle Seahawks. The Washington Redskins’ defensive backs coach was loosely keeping tabs on Blackmon, who he coached for two seasons on the New York Giants.
After Blackmon spent all of the preseason as the Seahawks’ nickel cornerback, Fewell was surprised when Seattle cut the nine-year veteran as it finalized its 53-man roster.
The Redskins figured they could use depth at the cornerback position while Chris Culliver served a one-game suspension in Week 2 and Justin Rogers dealt with the early phases of a plantar fasciitis injury that would later land him on injured reserve. When general manager Scot McCloughan discussed the idea of bringing in Blackmon at a staff meeting, Fewell raised his hand in support.
“I’d love to say I was the guy, but I’m not that good,” Fewell joked. “That was Scot. I just endorsed it. We brought him in with the intent of being the fifth defensive back. We knew he’d be very professional. Will has had a good career and he’s always exceeded people’s expectations.”
The move seemed relatively minor at the time, but has since helped stabilize the Redskins’ secondary, which has been crippled by injuries in the first half of the season.
Blackmon has started the last four games for the Redskins and played every defensive snap in the last two. He started three games while Culliver was sidelined with a left knee injury. Culliver returned on Sunday against the New England Patriots, but Blackmon started again with Bashaud Breeland limited after straining his right hamstring in Week 7.
In Week 3, Blackmon played 29 snaps against the Giants, though he had only been with the team for nine days. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall sprained his right big toe at the start of the second half and has not played since. The Redskins, who cut cornerback David Amerson three days before that game, moved Breeland from nickel outside and asked Blackmon to fill the slot.
“We didn’t really know what to expect,” coach Jay Gruden said. “We were hoping to get some of that veteran leadership in here — a guy that could play all the positions and learn fast, because he had to come in here and play quickly with all the injuries that we had. You get a rookie in here that hadn’t done any of the stuff, it’s hard. You get a veteran who’s played the coverages that we play, it’s a little bit easier. He came in here and adapted very quickly, picked up the terminology like that. He’s been a big addition for us, and he’s been great.”
Though he was disappointed and surprised he was cut by the Seahawks, it was not the first time the 31-year-old was uncertain of where his football career would head.
After the Green Bay Packers drafted Blackmon out of Boston College in the fourth round in 2006, he was expected to contend for the starting nickel position, but he broke a foot on the first day of minicamp. In Blackmon’s fourth season with the Packers, he was returning a kickoff against the Minnesota Vikings when he cut to his left and tore the ACL in his left knee.
“I actually watched that injury for the first time two weeks ago,” Blackmon said. “I felt like I had to watch it just to get over it.”
He was 24 and his rookie contract was expiring. Team doctors advised him to get a cadaver replacement, a procedure no longer commonly used to repair the ACL, but his body rejected it. Blackmon signed a one-year deal in the offseason, but the Packers cut him in September.
That October, he signed with the Giants. They used a roster exemption that allowed him to undergo a second procedure that fully repaired his knee. The Giants re-signed Blackmon in 2011, and he helped New York defeat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.
Blackmon was released in the offseason and after nobody called, he took the year off. The birth of his son, Ryder, helped soften the blow.
“It was cool because I got to be a parent,” said Blackmon. “It was awesome to just watch him. I was training, but I got to be a husband and be a parent, got to have Thanksgiving and Christmas in my house.”
Blackmon began calling teams himself and signed a contract with the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League as a backup plan. He called Seahawks general manager John Schneider, who had previously worked in Green Bay as a personnel analyst when Blackmon was on the Packers.
The Seahawks signed Blackmon the day before Blackmon was about to attend a regional combine. He was cut on Aug. 27, but it spurred a stint with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2013 and 2014. Blackmon played in 23 games with 12 starts and had 70 tackles and two sacks and broke up 11 passes.
After Blackmon was released by Jacksonville, he was signed, and cut again, by Seattle. Though the Redskins were unsure of what to expect when they called, Blackmon wasn’t.
“I said OK, I’m packing my bags because I’m not going home,” Blackmon said. “I knew how good I felt. It’s just been a blessing, man. I can’t control everything. Only things I can control are things like my effort, being a good teammate, trying to lead and do the little things. When my opportunity is called, I have to take advantage of those things.”
• Anthony Gulizia can be reached at agulizia@washingtontimes.com.
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