He didn't redshirt last year so he still has his normal redshirt available to use.
Edit: Sorry I thought you were talking about Newsome. If you were talking about Nixon, then he would just redshirt. You can't apply for a medical redshirt until the end of your career.
I would hope the success, or lack of success, of special teams wouldn't come down to not having Isaiah Stalbird.
FYI - I am not declaring that is your stance. Just stating the obvious.