Jamal Adams

Jamal Adams Skipping Seahawks’ Minicamp

June 15th, 2021 at 10:51am CST by Zachary Links

Jamal Adams is holding out. The Seahawks safety will not participate this week’s mandatory minicamp (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter).

The Seahawks acquired Adams and a fourth-rounder from the Jets last year for a 2021 first-round pick, a 2021 third-round pick, a 2022 first-rounder, and safety Bradley McDougald. Adams, of course, was embroiled in a longstanding contract dispute with the Jets. But, upon arrival in Seattle, he agreed to play on his existing deal, which meant a salary of just $3.59MM last year. Right now, he’s on course to make $9.86MM for 2021, thanks to his fifth-year option.

Broncos star Justin Simmons stands as the league’s highest-paid safety at $15.25MM per year. Meanwhile, Landon Collins leads the position in full guarantees at $44.5MM. Adams is definitely looking to top Simmons’ AAV, and his camp may also be pushing for a new watermark in guarantees.

Adams suffered a torn labrum and a groin injury last year, but he still showed his mettle as a dangerous playmaker. In 2020, Adams’ 9.5 sacks set a new single-season record for defensive backs — he did it in just 12 games. For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics had him as a middle-of-the-pack cover man and run defender.

By skipping minicamp, Adams will be subject to fines of ~$93K per day. That’s alright by the All-Pro safety, who is hoping to send a serious message to Seattle.

Seahawks Notes: Wilson, Carroll, Dunlap

February 28th, 2021 at 12:24pm CST by Rory Parks

One of the reasons for the trade rumors swirling around Seahawks QB Russell Wilson — and perhaps the primary reason — is Wilson’s relationship with head coach Pete Carroll, which appears to be strained. Apparently, his relationship with Carroll’s sons hasn’t been much better.

According to a tweet from The Athletic, Wilson believes Carroll and his sons, Nolan and Brennan, answer to no one (Nolan serves as the team’s WRs coach, and Brennan had been working as the run game coordinator before accepting a position at the University of Arizona). And, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes, Wilson is 100% correct.

Former owner Paul Allen “stayed deep in the background” when he was alive, and his sister, Jody Allen, has largely done the same since she inherited the team. Some league sources believe the Seahawks are essentially run by the Allens’ parent company, Vulcan Inc., which in turn defers to the head coach as the club’s de facto CEO. So while Jody Allen could intervene in light of the Wilson trade rumblings, her track record suggests that she will not do so, and that Pete Carroll will ultimately be the one to decide whether to deal Wilson.

While Wilson himself has said he does not expect to be dealt, Florio believes the 32-year-old will ultimately request a trade either this year or next. If QB and HC do not mend fences soon, it’s easy to envision such a scenario.

Now for more from the Emerald City:

Unlike Florio, Brady Henderson of ESPN.com does not believe Wilson will be traded. One of the reasons for that is the fact that — as our Sam Robinson wrote several days ago in the piece linked above — a trade will leave $39MM in dead money on the Seahawks’ cap. While a post-June 1 trade will allow the team to spread out that hit and actually create $19MM in 2021 space, Seattle is lacking a first-rounder and third-rounder this season, so a Wilson trade might be more beneficial if it happened prior to this year’s draft and not after June 1.
Still, Henderson believes the ‘Hawks will make a trade that both sheds some salary — the team has less than $8MM of cap space relative to the $180MM floor — and adds some much-needed draft capital. There is no indication as of yet that Seattle will look to trade players like Carlos Dunlap, Bobby Wagner, or Jamal Adams, but Henderson could see it happening.
As of now, though, Henderson predicts that the club will cut Dunlap and look to re-sign him to a less expensive contract — the former Bengal is due to carry a $14.1MM cap hit in 2021 — while restructuring the contract of franchise icon Wagner and extending 2020 trade acquisition Adams.
Proven performance escalators for several 2018 draftees have played a role in Seattle’s cap crunch. Since he earned a Pro Bowl nod in his rookie season, punter Michael Dickson has a $3.384MM salary for 2021 — the amount of the second-round RFA tender — while cornerback Tre Flowers is due to earn $2.183MM since he met the snap count requirement for the Level One PPE (Twitter link via Henderson). If you need a refresher, OverTheCap.com offers a comprehensive explanation of PPEs.
Presently, the Seahawks’ highest draft choice is their second-rounder (No. 56 overall). Given the state of the club’s offensive line, and Wilson’s recent comments in that regard, most mocks have Seattle selecting an OL with that pick, as Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times observes. Ohio State guard Wyatt Davis and Tennessee guard Trey Smith would be worthy Day 2 selections.

Jamal Adams Will Require Offseason Surgery

January 10th, 2021 at 9:34am CST by Rory Parks

The Seahawks suffered an early playoff exit at the hands of the division-rival Rams yesterday, and they enter the offseason with plenty of items on their to-do list. One of those items is a new contract for safety Jamal Adams, who revealed after the game that he will require at least two surgeries in short order (via Bob Condotta and Adam Jude of the Seattle Times).

Adams suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder during Seattle’s regular season finale against the 49ers last week, but he played through the pain yesterday so that he could experience his first taste of postseason action. He said he will also need surgery to repair injuries to fingers on his left hand, and his right shoulder — which he injured back in November — might need medical attention as well.

The star defender also missed four games earlier this year due to a groin injury, but he still showed his mettle as a dangerous playmaker. The 9.5 sacks he posted in just 12 games is the highest single-season total in league history for a defensive back, and despite the injuries, he was flying all over the field yesterday, recording four tackles and three passes defensed.

On the other hand, questions about his abilities in coverage have persisted throughout the first few years of his career, and Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics indicated that only his pass rush skills were elite this year. His run defense and coverage grades were middle-of-the-pack.

That reality and his injuries may well factor into contract negotiations this offseason. Though Adams was demanding a lucrative extension from the Jets, he was perfectly content to play out the fourth year of his rookie deal this year after Gang Green traded him to the ‘Hawks. He said yesterday that he loves being a part of the Seattle organization but that he is more focused on getting healthy at the moment. With respect to his contract situation, he said, “[t]hat’s something that is out of my hands right now.”

The top of the safety market features an average annual value of $14.75MM and full guarantees of $31MM. But Adams might not just be looking to beat those numbers, he might be looking to shatter them. The Seahawks did give up two first-round draft picks to acquire him, and it seems likely that the two sides will be able to come to terms, but contract talks may have a few tricky moments.

Currently, Adams is under club control through 2021 by virtue of the fifth-year option of his rookie contract.

Seahawks Promote S Damarious Randall

October 3rd, 2020 at 3:21pm CST by Sam Robinson

As could be expected given the circumstances, the Seahawks are promoting Damarious Randall from their practice squad.

The Seahawks signed the former first-round pick earlier this week. Randall will likely play a key role Sunday against the Dolphins. Neither Jamal Adams nor Quinton Dunbar practiced this week. Both are out for Seattle’s Week 4 contest.

Randall could not make the Raiders’ 53-man roster this year, after signing a one-year deal, but brings 65 games’ and 56 starts’ worth of experience to the Seahawks’ depleted secondary. After being used at cornerback for three season in Green Bay, Randall started 26 games at safety with Cleveland over the past two seasons.

Seattle will also elevate linebacker Shaquem Griffin and cornerback Gavin Heslop from its practice squad. Beginning his season on the Seahawks’ practice squad, Griffin played in Seattle’s shootout win over Dallas last weekend. The third-year linebacker was active for each of the Seahawks’ 32 regular-season games from 2018-19.

NFC West Notes: Adams, Gordon, 49ers

August 4th, 2020 at 5:08pm CST by Rory Parks

New Seahawks safety Jamal Adams has told the team that he is content to play out the 2020 season on his current contract, which is one of the reasons why Seattle felt comfortable sending a king’s ransom to the Jets in exchange for the star defender. And as Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times tweets, Adams says the plan is to spend his entire career with the ‘Hawks. He is confident that his contract situation will work itself out, and it seems likely that the two sides will commence negotiations after the season.

Now for more out of the NFC West:

The Seahawks are said to be interested in a reunion with WR Josh Gordon, and apparently the interest is mutual. Gordon recently posted a picture of the Seattle skyline to social media, saying, “Ima [j]uss leave this here and be quiet” (h/t Field Yates of ESPN.com on Twitter). The club is also monitoring Antonio Brown.
The Ravens and Patriots are reportedly interested in TE Delanie Walker, and Matt Barrows of The Athletic thinks the 49ers — who drafted Walker in 2006 and employed him through 2012 — would also be a great fit. However, Barrows has not heard anything on that front lately.
In the same piece linked above, Barrows says there is a good chance the 49ers use their first-round pick in 2021 on a CB and that the team could also invest some free agent dollars into the position. That could mean re-signing Richard Sherman or bringing in an outside FA.
The 49ers recently worked out DL Damontre Moore, per veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (via Twitter). Moore has bounced around quite a bit since he entered the league as a third-round pick of the Giants in 2013, and he appeared in two games for San Francisco last year before landing on IR.
In case you missed it, Cardinals OT Marcus Gilbert has opted out of the 2020 season.

Jets Notes: Adams, Johnson, Clowney, Long

July 28th, 2020 at 4:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

Joe Douglas confirmed the Jets had trade talks with several teams regarding Jamal Adams but categorized the sweepstakes-winning Seahawks as the most aggressive suitor. The Jets and Seahawks began talking weeks ago, and Seattle’s two-first-rounders-and-change offer swayed Douglas from planning not to trade his All-Pro safety to pulling the trigger (Twitter links via SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano). Adams lobbed salvos at Douglas and Adam Gase, and when Douglas listened to offers for the decorated defender at last year’s trade deadline, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (video link) Adams reached out to several Cowboys players to inform them of his interest in going to Dallas. This irked Jets teammates, coaches and team brass. While Douglas said he wanted to make Adams a Jet for life earlier this year, the second-year GM said this week he never promised him a contract, per Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (on Twitter).

Here is the latest coming out of Jets headquarters:

Although the 49ers have made some big trades under their current power structure, John Lynch said they did not call the Jets about Adams, via NBC Sports Bay Area. However, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler reported (via Twitter) involved parties believed the Cowboys and 49ers were both involved in talks with the Jets for Adams. The 49ers, who joined the Cowboys on Adams’ list of preferred destinations, re-signed Jimmie Ward this offseason and have starter Jaquiski Tartt back as well.
New Jets safety Bradley McDougald said Jadeveon Clowney remains interested in a deal (Twitter link). The former No. 1 overall pick expressed Jets interest in April as well. The Jets were linked to Clowney in March but, despite an apparent need for pass-rushing help, are not believed to be interested in the three-time Pro Bowler. Adams finished as Gang Green’s second-leading sacker in 2019.
Douglas convinced Ryan Kalil to unretire and become the Jets’ starting center last season, so reports of him being in talks with recently retired guard Kyle Long earlier this year carried a bit more weight. But Douglas said those talks were merely friends catching up. Douglas spent 2015 in the Bears’ front office prior to leaving for Philadelphia. That said, Mehta notes the two indeed discussed Long unretiring. The Jets re-signed Alex Lewis and added Greg Van Roten to a guard group that includes longtime starter Brian Winters.
Amid larger headlines involving current U.S. ambassador to Great Britain Woody Johnson, the Jets owner was reported by CNN to have made racist and sexist comments during his time as an ambassador. Johnson has denied the allegations, which prompted a State Department investigation. Following the report, however, acting Jets owner Christopher Johnson called almost every player on Gang Green’s roster to listen to their concerns, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com notes.

Seahawks’ Jamal Adams To Play On Current Deal

July 27th, 2020 at 8:41am CST by Zachary Links

Jamal Adams agreed to play on his existing contract before the Seahawks completed their trade with the Jets, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). With that, Adams will play out the 2020 season on a modest $3.59MM salary. After that, Adams is due to make $9.86MM in 2021, per the new deal.

It’s likely that the two sides will resume talks after the season, but nothing has been promised to the Pro Bowl safety. In New York, Adams was adamant about getting a new deal that would position him as the league’s highest-paid safety and even stepped up his demands to the $20MM neighborhood. Reportedly, Adams was willing to sign a slightly cheaper extension with one of his preferred teams, a list that included the Seahawks. Still, that means a deal in excess of $15MM per annum to top Bears standout Eddie Jackson, and teams are understandably skittish about committing major dollars to players in this current climate.

Other disgruntled players have made similar concessions this offseason. Trent Williams wanted a long-term extension to put him near the top of the tackle leaderboard, but agreed to table talks once he was traded to the 49ers. Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue is reportedly willing to wait too, if another team is able to work out a deal. In the case of Williams, the Niners effectively met him in the middle by guaranteeing a portion of his 2020 salary and waiving their right to franchise tag him next year. It’s not clear whether the Seahawks are considering something similar for Adams.

Jets Trade Jamal Adams To Seahawks

July 25th, 2020 at 3:51pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jets have traded safety Jamal Adams to the Seahawks, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Seahawks sent a 2021 first-round pick, a 2021 third-round pick, a 2022 first-round pick, and safety Bradley McDougald to the Jets in exchange for Adams and a 2022 fourth-round choice.

Jets GM Joe Douglas has come under fire for his handling of Adams, but it’s hard to argue with the Jets’ return on the trade. It’s a stunning haul, considering how badly the Adams bridge had been burned.

The Seahawks, meanwhile, have received one of the league’s most exciting young talents. Adams – who won’t turn 25 until October – has been a certified star since his rookie season and he’s been rock solid in coverage for the last two years. Between 2018 and 2019, only Vikings standout Anthony Harris graded out higher than Adams at safety, according to Pro Football Focus. Eddie Jackson (Bears) is No. 3 on the list, and he currently stands as the league’s top-paid safety. In 2019, Adams earned his first ever First-Team All-Pro nod while notching 75 tackles, seven passes defensed, 6.5 sacks, and a defensive touchdown.

It’s an immediate lift for the Seahawks and a future cornerstone for their secondary. Of course, they’ll have to iron out a new deal with Adams sooner rather than later. For now, Adams has two years of club control remaining on his deal. Beyond that, he’s seeking a deal that will position him as the league’s highest paid safety, meaning a floor of $15MM per year. Adams was also pushing the Jets for $20MM per season – putting him in defensive end territory – but that sticker price was probably exclusive to Gang Green. For the Seahawks, and other clubs that were on his wish list, the ask was believed to be a bit lower. Also, Adams is reportedly willing to wait until next year to start negotiations with the Seahawks.

Throughout the offseason, Douglas told the world that he would not trade Adams under any circumstances. That stance softened in recent weeks as Adams voice his displeasure more and more. Adams claims that the Jets promised him an extension offer in January. That offer never came. In the spring, the Jets pinned the delay on the pandemic and the related economic factors, but he wasn’t buying it. Per one recent report, Jets ownership instructed the front office to hold on large, multi-year committments long before COVID-19 reached the United States.

The Cowboys, Ravens, Texans, Chiefs, Eagles, 49ers, and Buccaneers were also among Adams’ preferred destinations. It’s not clear whether those clubs made an aggressive play for Adams, however. Any of those teams would have loved to have him – especially the Texans, given their glaring need at the position – but the Jets’ asking price coupled with the expense of a new Adams deal cooled the interest of most clubs. For the Seahawks, it was well worth it.

While most teams have held off on making major moves this offseason, the NFC West has been a notable exception. Adams is the latest big-time trade acquisition in the division, following the 49ers’ move for Trent Williams and the Cardinals stunner of a deal for DeAndre Hopkins. The Rams, who have made a habit of splashy moves in their new L.A. digs, have not been quite as proactive.

Jamal Adams: Adam Gase Isn’t “Right Leader” For Jets

July 24th, 2020 at 9:54am CST by Zachary Links

They say that time heals all wounds. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case for the Jets and Jamal Adams. In an interview with Manish Mehta of the Daily News, the Pro Bowl safety slammed Jets head coach Adam Gase and GM Joe Douglas.

“I don’t feel like he’s the right leader for this organization to reach the Promised Land. As a leader, what really bothers me is that he doesn’t have a relationship with everybody in the building,” Adams said, in reference to Gase. “At the end of the day, he doesn’t address the team,”. “If there’s a problem in the locker room, he lets another coach address the team. If we’re playing s—-y and we’re losing, he doesn’t address the entire team as a group at halftime. He’ll walk out of the locker room and let another coach handle it.”

Adams hasn’t spoken to Gase since the end of the regular season and hasn’t received the extension offer he says he was promised in January. In February, Douglas told the world that he wanted Adams to be a “Jet for life.” The delay in talks could be attributed to the pandemic, but Mehta hears that the Jets front office was told to ease up on spending long before COVID-19 reached the U.S. In May, Adams says the Jets asked his camp to table talks until next year, so that they could monitor Adams and see if he was still committed to the game and the team.

“It was very insulting,” said Adams, who has built a reputation as one of the NFL’s hardest working players. “You know I bust my ass for that organization every day. I work my ass off. For them to say that to me, I was like ‘Okay… Whoa! That was little bit too far.’”

“If they would have just simply said, ‘You know what, Jamal — we’re not going to look to pay you this year, we want to keep adding players — I would have respected that more. I would say, ‘You know what? I respect it. As a man, I get it. I understand it’s a business.’ But for them to tell me that they’re going to pay me and then not send over a proposal after they said that’s what they were going to, that’s where we go wrong. And then for you to ignore me, that’s why I have a problem.”

Despite the animosity, Adams confirmed that he will report to camp on July 28th. Meanwhile, Adams says that Douglas is now open to trading him before the start of the season. After months of subtweets, pointed comments, and flat-out trade demands, the saga between Adams and Gang Green could be nearing its finale.

AFC East Notes: Bills, Jets, Pats, Camp, Cam

July 12th, 2020 at 4:38pm CST by Sam Robinson

The three AFC East teams located in the northeast will have different protocols for returning to training camp. Bills and Jets players will not have to quarantine for 14 days upon returning to their respective states for camp, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. New York is working with New Jersey and Connecticut on a COVID-19 travel policy that mandates 14-day quarantines for people who travel to these states from states with high coronavirus test rates. An exemption for NFL camps means the Bills, Jets and Giants will return to work under the same guidelines, despite the latter two franchises being headquartered in New Jersey. The teams’ players will need to be given COVID-19 tests upon arrival, and they will be restricted from working until the results arrive.

However, Patriots players will need to arrive sooner. Massachusetts is not working with the aforementioned three states, and Mike Reiss of ESPN.com notes that with Pats camp still set to open July 28, players who reside out of state must arrive by Tuesday and quarantine for 14 days. Massachusetts requires all non-essential travelers from non-New England states, or New York and New Jersey, to go through with post-arrival quarantines. This will affect many Patriot players.

Shifting away from COVID-19 matters, here is the latest from the AFC East:

While Jamal Adams has submitted a trade request and has indicated he would like to play for the Cowboys — one of the handful of teams on the All-Pro safety’s desired destination list — one of his Jets teammates classifies this as overblown. Le’Veon Bell said during a recent radio interview with Hot 97 (Twitter link via ESPN’s Adam Schefter) he believes Adams wants to stay with the Jets. The fourth-year defender did say in December he wanted to stay with the Jets. However, he since skipped their virtual offseason program, requested a trade and has been linked to having issues with Adam Gase. This followed his issues with how GM Joe Douglas handled trade talks last fall.
The Jets have needed help on the edge for years, but they did not aggressively pursue aid on this front this offseason. They signed returning sack leader (with eight) Jordan Jenkins to a one-year deal and drafted Florida edge rusher Jabari Zuniga in Round 3. Do not expect the Jets to jump into a bidding war for Jadeveon Clowney, Everson Griffen or Markus Golden ahead of training camp, per Brian Costello of the New York Post. The Jets are open to signing a pass rusher on a low-cost deal but are eyeing some carryover cap space for 2021, per Costello. Gang Green currently possesses $24.5MM in space — fifth-most in the league. This would help toward an Adams extension.
Cam Newton has a 13% playing-time incentive in his Patriots contract. The former Panthers quarterback will earn $250K if he hits that threshold. This does not count toward New England’s cap, however, with Reiss indicating that since Newton played just 12% of Carolina’s 2019 snaps the Pats were permitted to categorize this seemingly easy-to-obtain incentive as “not likely to be earned.”
The Bills hired two business-side executives recently, naming Jason Sinnarajah as their VP of business administration and Mike McFarlane as VP of finance and administration. Co-owner Kim Pegula‘s official statement stressed the duo’s ties to Buffalo and commitment to Western New York. The Bills’ future in Buffalo is a tad murky, after Roger Goodell‘s comments about the franchise’s stadium situation, so Pegula mentioning new hires’ Buffalo ties is somewhat notable.

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