Jamal Adams formally requested a trade on Thursday, thus marking the latest and ugliest development in his negotiation talks with the Jets.
Adams has grown unhappy and impatient with the lack of progress on a contract extension. The safety isn’t the first All-Pro that New York has upset during contract extension negotiations, though.
While no trade is imminent and the Jets don’t seem inclined to grant Adams’s request, New York does have a recent history of trading All-Pro defensive players.
John Abraham and Darrelle Revis are two players whose careers in New York included contract stalemates and then trades.
Abraham, a pass-rusher that the Jets are still looking to replace, grew frustrated with New York placing its franchise tag on him in 2005. In response, he sat out training camp. New York placed the franchise tag on Abraham again in 2006. With the two sides not being able to strike a satisfactory deal, the Jets shipped Abraham to Atlanta in exchange for the 29th pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, which the Jets turned into Nick Mangold.
Revis, arguably the greatest defensive player in the history of the franchise, had multiple contract disputes during his first stint with the Jets. Playing at a high level and unhappy with the terms of his rookie contract, Revis held out in 2010, missing all of training camp. The Jets ultimately made him the highest-paid cornerback in the league. Two seasons later, however, Revis insinuated that he was not happy with the terms of that contract, but did not hold out during training camp. Revis then tore his ACL during the 2012 season and was shipped to Tampa Bay in exchange for a 2013 first-round pick (Sheldon Richardson) and a 2014 fourth-round pick (Jalen Saunders).
While Adams has requested a trade, he is also reportedly looking to be one of the highest-paid defensive players in the NFL. It’s not likely that Joe Douglas is willing to give in to those demands, and neither would a team looking to acquire Adams. That said, the Johnson family has signed off on trades of two of the team’s best defensive players before. It’s certainly in their wheelhouse to part ways with players of Adams’ caliber if it’s in the best interest of the team.
With two more years of team control, Adams doesn’t have the same leverage that Abraham and Revis once did. Still, he’s made it clear that he’s fed up with the situation and ultimately looking to move on.
Whether he follows in the footsteps of the All-Pro Jets defenders before him remains to be seen.