After much tension and speculation, a deal was finally made for star safety Jamal Adams. The New York Jets traded the 24-year-old to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for safety Bradley McDougald, first-round picks in 2021 and 2022 as well as a third-round pick in 2021. Adams will fly to Seattle on Monday for a physical, but as long as he is healthy, Adams will be a Seahawk.
Watching this whole Adams-Jets drama play out over the past few weeks has made him getting dealt out of New York less surprising. Nevertheless, the destination is still interesting from a purely competitive standpoint. But what does it mean for the rest of the league?
What this move means for the Jets:
With Buffalo and Miami both trending in the right direction, and New England entering the post Tom Brady era, the AFC East has become one of the more interesting divisions. Losing one of the top defensive playmakers is usually bad news for any team, but not always. Oakland dealt Khalil Mack to Chicago and acquired two first-round picks, as well as a third and a sixth, and have built a nice young core on defense with players like Maxx Crosby, Clelin Ferrel, and Jonathan Abrams. The Jets acquired a similar haul for Adams, and can now use the draft capital they have acquired two build the team on both sides of the ball. As for the rest of the AFC, it isn’t exactly the worst thing in the world to see one of your conference opponents lose arguably a top-five defensive player in the sport. Interesting to see what the Jets do in the next two drafts.
What this means for the NFC:
In my opinion, this is where it gets interesting. The NFC is loaded with offensive teams and offensive-minded coaches. Teams like the 49ers with Kyle Shanahan, the Rams with Sean McVay, and the Saints with Sean Payton are all teams with offensive firepower and the right coaches to execute. The NFC West in particular just became perhaps the best division in the NFL. With the Rams and 49ers, both representing the conference in the Super Bowl in 2018 and 2019 respectively and the Cardinals drafting the 2019 Offensive Rookie of the Year Kyler Murray, not to mention trading for DeAndre Hopkins, one of the best receivers in the league, the division is as competitive as any other. Adams should be able to give these teams a run for their money.
What this means for Seattle:
The addition of Adams puts one of the most dynamic playmakers right up against some of the smartest minds and transcendent talents the sport has ever seen. Not only do they now have Russel Wilson, arguably the most consistently underrated quarterbacks in the league today leading the offense, but the Hawks now have their captain on defense. Since the legion of boom disbanded with the departures of players like Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, and Kam Chancellor, the Seahawks now have a defensive force they can compete with. If the team can somehow solve their pass rusher issue, for example bringing back Jadeveon Clowney on a one year deal, the trio of Clowney, Bobby Wagner, and Adams would strike fear into any opponent. Making the playoffs every year since Wilson was drafted in 2012, the team hopes that Adams is the missing piece to return to the Super Bowl.