New York Jets safety Jamal Adams wants to be traded, but Green Bay isn’t one of his preferred landing spots.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Adams – the sixth overall pick in the 2017 draft and a two-time Pro Bowler – has eight preferred destinations: the Baltimore Ravens, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.
A ninth team was added Friday, when Adams told Ryan Clark of ESPN that he’d love to play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, via Field Yates of ESPN.
The Packers, despite Mike Pettine’s affinity for safeties, were always an unlikely landing spot, given the resources already tied up into the defense – particularly at safety – and the team’s future financial plans. Several important players, including left tackle David Bakhtiari, defensive lineman Kenny Clark and running back Aaron Jones, will be free agents following the 2020 season.
Adams not only wants a new team but a brand new contract, and signing Adams to a new deal will be expensive. The Packers just don’t have the wiggle room under the salary cap to add another expensive piece on defense without sacrificing a major piece or two (or three) elsewhere.
Also, the Jets will likely ask a high cost for acquiring a Pro Bowl talent who still has two years left on his contract and doesn’t turn 25 until October.
There’s little doubt Adams would be a nice fit in Pettine’s defense. He is an aggressive, in-the-box safety with 12 sacks, 25 pass breakups and six forced fumbles during his first three seasons. A difference-making talent, Adams could be a force as the hybrid linebacker-safety Pettine loves to use.
But the Packers recently invested at safety (Adrian Amos, Darnell Savage), Green Bay isn’t currently a preferred destination for Adams, and GM Brian Gutekunst has much bigger roster-building decisions ahead of him.
Raven Greene, who started last season as Pettine’s go-to safety-linebacker, figures to be the front runner to play the position in 2020. He played in just two games before suffering a significant ankle injury in 2019.
[lawrence-related id=47059]