Ryan Christopher Neal (born December 24, 1995) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

strong safety Safety is a position in gridiron football on the defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two variations of the position: the free safety and the strong safety. Their dut ...

for the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of the Upland South than the Mi ...

College career

Neal played four seasons at

, compiling 226 career tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, five interceptions and 19 passes defensed. As a senior, Neal led the team with three interceptions and tied for the team lead with 84 tackles and was named honorable mention All-

Missouri Valley Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivis ...

Professional career

Philadelphia Eagles

Neal signed with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

on April 28, 2018. He was waived by the team during training camp on August 6, 2018.

Atlanta Falcons

Neal was signed by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

on August 11, 2018. However, he failed to make the 53-man roster out of training camp and was subsequently re-signed by the Falcons to the team's practice squad on September 2, 2018. Neal was promoted to the Falcons active roster on November 28, 2018. Neal made his NFL debut on December 9, 2018, in a 34-20 loss to the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

, playing on special teams in the only regular season appearance of his rookie season. Neal was waived by the Falcons as part of the team's final roster cuts on August 31, 2019.

Seattle Seahawks

Neal was signed to the

practice squad on September 2, 2019. The Seahawks promoted Neal to the active roster on December 11, 2019. Neal re-signed with the Seahawks on April 20, 2020. He was waived on September 5, 2020, and signed to the practice squad the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on September 26 for the team's week 3 game against the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

. With six seconds remaining in the game, he intercepted

Dak Prescott Rayne Dakota Prescott (born July 29, 1993) is an American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Mississippi State, where he twice received first-team All- SEC honors, a ...

in the end zone, sealing a 38–31 victory for the Seahawks. After automatically reverting to the practice squad following the game, Neal was promoted to the active roster on September 30, 2020. On October 4, 2020, with Adams and

Lano Hill Lano Kash-Pride Hill (born Delano Kash-Pride Hill; November 26, 1995) is an American football safety for the Michigan Panthers of the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football at Michigan. He is the older brother of Laver ...

still injured, he made his first start for the Seahawks in a game against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

. Neal made 6 tackles, and also collected his second interception, from

Ryan Fitzpatrick Ryan Joseph Fitzpatrick (born November 24, 1982) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. During his career, Fitzpatrick started at quarterback for nine different teams, the most ...

. Neal signed a one-year

exclusive-rights free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

tender with the Seahawks on June 8, 2021.

Personal life

Neal is the younger brother of former

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

Mike Neal Michael Jamel Neal (born June 26, 1987) is a former American football outside linebacker who played for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Purdue. Neal was drafted by the Green Bay Pack ...

References

External links

Southern Illinois Salukis bioSeattle Seahawks bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neal, Ryan 1995 births Living people Sportspeople from Hammond, Indiana Players of American football from Indiana American football safeties Southern Illinois Salukis football players Philadelphia Eagles players Atlanta Falcons players Seattle Seahawks players