The path from Brad Evans’ locker to Sigi Schmid’s office is worn down to bare thread by now. And it’s getting another workout this week.
Evans was Seattle’s talkative talisman long before he pulled on the captain’s armband for the first time at the tail end of the 2013 season. Evans started in the midfield in Seattle’s first ever MLS game in 2009, and he put in the game’s second goal to seal it off. Between that game and the end of the 2014 season, Evans played 10,976 MLS minutes for the Sounders, almost all of it in the midfield.
But Seattle was far from perfect in central defense in 2014, where MLS Defender of the Year Chad Marshall struggled to find a consistent dance partner. By the end of the 2014 regular season, the club had allowed 50 goals over 34 matches, the worst goals-against record of any team to make the playoffs.
Before the team broke for the offseason, the coaching staff broached the topic with Evans about moving back into central defense, despite the fact that he’d never played there consistently in his pro career. Some of Evans’ core strengths seemed to translate well to the defensive side of the game, and his organizational capacity was already arguably the best on the team.
In addition, Evans had found a spot on Jurgen Klinsmann’s U.S. National Team back line during the previous World Cup cycle, albeit largely at right back.
But could Evans actually handle such a crucial change? He certainly thought so, especially after working in at the position for the first time during preseason in California and Arizona. But he needed some level of closure from Schmid.
“I called Sigi in January and asked 'What's the deal?' because I want to be mentally prepared, I want to play one position and play it well,” Evans said before the season. “I think this will give me the best chance moving forward. Only time will tell how it goes, but the good thing is I can play other positions as well. If something happens where they don't like what they see, I'm sure they'll make a swift change.”
Time, it turns out, told a favorable story.
Evans hit a turbulent patch early this season while he acclimated himself to the position, notably during a 3-2 loss to San Jose two weeks into the season. But as he’s done throughout his career, Evans adapted. The Sounders gave up just three goals in their next six games, and they had the league’s best defense through May before injuries and absences made mincemeat of Seattle’s summer.
Then, in August, came Román Torres, a veteran center back and a marquee summer signing that forced Evans to trudge back down the hall and find out where he was headed. Suddenly Evans was needed back in the midfield, so he acquiesced again, starting each of Torres’ four games back in his old position.
Whatever the team needed, Evans was there.
“He’s always been a valuable player in that regard,” Schmid said. “I know he sort of feels that if he could have one position it’d be better for him, but I think his versatility is something that’s helped him as well. It helped him get back into the national team as well. Having a player like that, you always need somebody like that on every team. Every team I’ve coached I’ve had somebody like that.”
With Torres now out for the rest of the season with an ACL tear, Evans is back in the mixer at centerback for the final push toward the playoffs. Schmid said veteran Zach Scott is also an option in the back, but there’s little doubt that Evans will likely log every minute he can over the final six weeks of the season. With the club in need, Evans should crest 2,000 minutes for just the third time in his career, and the first time since 2012.
“This season was pretty consistent, up until bringing in Román,” Evans said this week. “So I kind of got back to past years of being that versatile guy and moving around a little bit, center midfield to right mid. And to be honest I felt comfortable even moving positions, regardless of whether I wanted to or not. It’s what the team needed, and it made us a better team in this last stretch. Did we get more guys back? Of course. But overall I thought we’ve been playing pretty good soccer.”
Evans mixed recovery time into his training this week after taking a ball to the face during the team’s 1-1 draw in San Jose last weekend, which forced him off at halftime. He has spent much of the week working through the league’s strict concussion protocol, which he’ll need to pass to make the 18-man roster for the critical Cascadia Cup clash against the Vancouver Whitecaps this weekend. All signs have been positive so far.
As one of the last original MLS Sounders left on the roster, it’s remarkable in its own right that Evans’ longevity and adaptability have kept him in such good form for such a prolonged period of time. And as far as Evans is concerned, turning all that into an MLS Cup trophy is the only thing that matters.
“It’s not a complacent team,” Evans said. “So for me, it’s plug in where needed, five games left, get after it and make a run at this thing.”
