Ranking Jamal Adams’ seven preferred trade destinations if the Jets deal him.
There have been many cracks in the levy keeping the Jamal Adams and New York Jets relationship intact this offseason but it may have finally broken on Thursday. As reported by ESPN’s Rich Cimini, one of the NFL‘s best safeties has requested a trade from the team that selected him No. 6 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Adams’ request stems from a longstanding and vocal desire to begin working on a contract extension before he plays the penultimate season of his rookie deal. Despite his desire to work on a pact that would keep him with Gang Green, Adams has repeatedly said that Jets have not started any talks. And that has led us to this point.
In the wake of the revelation that he has requested a trade, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the 2019 First-Team All-Pro selection and two-time Pro Bowler has a preferred list of teams that he’d like to land with:
https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1273733195125710848
Of course, as a player is requesting a trade in this situation, their preferred list only matters but so much. If the Jets get the best offer from one of the other 25 teams in the league, there is absolutely nothing stopping them from taking such a deal. So that list of teams should come with a giant grain of salt.
At the same time, those seven teams being named as Adams’ welcomed landing spots could light a fire under those teams to make a move for the All-Pro safety. Subsequently, it feels proper to take those seven NFL teams and rank them as landing spots in a Jamal Adams trade.
7. Houston Texans
Trading for Jamal Adams would give the Houston Texans an absolutely fearsome pair of young safeties. The current Jets star would join Justin Reid on the back end of the defense under head coach/general manager Bill O’Brien if a deal were to happen. With the talent and still-present upside of those two players, that could be a trump card for the Texans’ defense.
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Furthermore, it stands to reason why the young star would want to end up in Houston. Not only has the team been the kings of the AFC South in recent years but Adams is a Texas native, going to high school some four hours away from Houston. A return to his roots undoubtedly is something that would be attractive to him.
While that may all be true, Adams is likely a pipe dream for the Texans in their current situation. Since taking over the front office decision-making, O’Brien has been handing out draft capital like candy at Halloween. And not only has that hindered the roster in some ways but it’s also left them with not enough picks to actually make a deal with the Jets.
It’d be truly shocking if New York didn’t net, at minimum, a first-round pick from whichever team they make a trade with should they choose to do so. Houston legitimately can’t offer that because the Dolphins already acquired their 2021 first-rounder in the Laremy Tunsil deal. Thus, that’s why they bring up the rear in these rankings.
6. Seattle Seahawks
Some people are likely going to cry foul at the Seattle Seahawks being this low on this list. After all, Pete Carroll’s team has been a perennial playoff contender and, as long as Russell Wilson is under center, they are likely going to continue to be in that position.
It would also make sense for the Seahawks to pursue Adams as they try to reform their defense. Over the past few seasons, Seattle has watched the Legion of Boom get dismantled and the front seven has seemingly fallen apart piece-by-piece to the point that veteran linebackers Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright — no slouches by any stretch of the imagination — are the only recognizable faces.
Adding Adams would be a start in trying to re-establish that defensive identity. The Seahawks aren’t exactly hurting at safety after trading for Quandre Diggs last year to pair him with Bradley McDougald, who has played well in the Northwest. Still, there’s no denying that Adams would be an upgrade.
At the same time, it’s hard for me to imagine that trading for Jamal Adams would change all that much for the Seahawks defense right now. Yes, it would give the team a young building block for a new defense but it truly boils down to them addressing a weakness in the wrong ways. Their areas of concern are cornerback and the defensive line, not at safety. Their resources would best be spent elsewhere.
5. Philadelphia Eagles
In case you were living under a rock during the 2019 season, the Philadelphia Eagles was a severe problem. Yes, they were able to win the NFC East despite that — but that might have more to do with the rest of the division struggling more than the Eagles taking it by the horns. And to their credit, they’ve been able to address that in some ways this offseason.
The Eagles already pulled off a big trade in the 2020 offseason as they landed cornerback Darius Slay from the Lions. While you could argue that they should’ve continued addressing that area in the draft (spoiler: they did not), that’s still an upgrade that should help them, along with the rest of the group returning to health.
Even after that trade, though, there is still a need for Jamal Adams to fill a role at strong safety. With the offseason departure of veteran stalwart Malcolm Jenkins, the Eagles are likely relying on Jalen Mills, who has been fine but nothing more. Adams would be an upgrade and, with an aggressive team like Philadelphia, it’d make sense for them to make a move.
Yet, they come in at No. 5 in these rankings — and could be lower — because it just doesn’t seem feasible. While the Eagles have the fourth-most remaining cap space in the league for 2020, they are projected to be $50 million over the cap in 2021, per Over The Cap. If Adams’ big concern is locking up an extension, Philadelphia almost surely doesn’t have the financial wiggle-room to make that happen.
4. San Francisco 49ers
Of the seven teams listed as preferred trade destinations for Jamal Adams, the most difficult for me to place was the San Francisco 49ers. That’s why they end up smack in the middle of these rankings. Because there are points to both sides of the coin when it comes to a potential trade.
On one hand, there has been a need at safety in San Francisco. The Niners were able to re-sign free safety Jimmie Ward in free agency this offseason, which is highly beneficial to their defense. At the same time, their secondary that balled out for them en route to the Super Bowl last season is largely headlined by veterans who may be inching past their prime. Thus, adding a young star like Adams would rejuvenate that group and upgrade over Jaquiski Tartt.
Additionally, let’s not rule out that, again, the 49ers just went to the Super Bowl last season. When a team is in a position of strength such as that, they are more privy to make big moves such as trading for Adams. It’s the type of deal that is set up for a contender to swoop in and make.
That can all be true and the trade still have issues, though. When you look at the 49ers, two things stand out. First, they are already cap-strapped with the young defense they’ve built and the contracts that will be looming for those players or that have already been signed. Moreover, the offensive line still needs to be addressed further, which means they need draft capital.
Adams landing with the 49ers would not be a bad move by any stretch. But with the issues that you can point out, that knocks them down the rankings a bit.
3. Kansas City Chiefs
Fresh off of winning the Super Bowl, the Kansas City Chiefs continued their offensive-minded approach when it came to the NFL Draft. Rather than address the linebacker group or the secondary in the first round, they took a running back to give Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid another toy to run up the score with.
While that’s a fun strategy, it does still leave some concern about the back-seven of the Chiefs defense. However, if Kansas City were to make a trade for Jamal Adams, they would be able to pair him with Tyrann Mathieu as their safeties. And while that doesn’t totally remedy their issues, specifically at cornerback, it would be a nice place to start.
Both Adams and Mathieu are incredibly gifted pure safeties. However, their greatest gift is their versatility. They can both excel in coverage, can both drop down into the nickel, can both stack the box and can both do essentially whatever is asked of them by the defensive coordinator. Having two players with that type of ability would be downright unfair.
The only reason that the Chiefs come in at No. 3 and not in the top two spots is due to the salary cap. With Mahomes’ own extension looming, KC is not in a financially favorable position. That’s especially true as they continue to try and figure out what to do with defensive tackle Chris Jones.
However, if the Chiefs can make the money with Adams work on their books, this move would be terrifying for the rest of the NFL.
2. Baltimore Ravens
As Lamar Jackson was running all over the league and allowing the Baltimore Ravens to score at will, the defense also took a big leap forward as the 2019 season progressed. The trade for cornerback Marcus Peters elevated a defense that needed more ways to deal with their lack of a pass rush outside of schemed-up pressure through blitzing.
The focus of the Ravens offseason, however, was both getting more firepower for the offense while shoring up the run defense. In the case of the latter, they did so with the first-round selection of linebacker Patrick Queen and trade for veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell. Now, that group is looking much more formidable.
Baltimore would look even scarier on defense with Jamal Adams. Chuck Clark is currently the starting strong safety and, though he’s a fine player, he’s the weak point of the secondary. Adams would make that an area of strength upon arrival. His ability to cover but also blitz and defend the run would be huge for the defense as a whole.
For me, the only reason the Ravens aren’t in the top spot in these rankings is that it’s not necessarily a move they need to make. Baltimore’s defense should be quite good with Clark as the starter. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t explore a trade for Adams by any means — but the lack of a dire need does slot them in at No. 2.
1. Dallas Cowboys
There’s no question about the Dallas Cowboys being the top landing spot for a Jamal Adams trade. All of the dominoes are in place for the team to make an aggressive move that would not only land them another young star to go with plenty of others already on the roster but it would address perhaps their most glaring need on the entire roster.
Coming into the 2020 NFL Draft, there was a lot of talk that the Cowboys needed to select a safety. The fact that they didn’t only further added fuel to the speculation that they were trying to trade for Adams. And that’s because they’ve lacked that presence on the back end for so long. Xavier Woods is a fine player but he’d be at his best when asked to be more of a pure coverage player.
Adding Adams to the fold would allow that to happen while also offering new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan a chess piece to utilize. With the pieces on the Dallas defense, Adams could be a game-changer.
While the Cowboys would have to maneuver with the salary cap, there are moves to make where they could free up room to sign Adams to the extension he desires. Furthermore, we know that Jerry Jones is always willing to make a big move if it means getting his team closer to a Super Bowl. With that and Adams’ home not being far from Dallas, it’d be hard to fathom if the Cowboys didn’t make a heavy push to trade for the safety.