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Jamal Adams chose the nuclear option in contract negotiations with the Jets.
Frustrated by the team’s unwillingness to sign him to a long-term extension, Adams told the Jets he’d like to be traded – preferably to one of seven contenders. It’s the apex of an eight-month rift between Adams and the Jets which began when reports surfaced that Joe Douglas fielded calls for Adams at the October trade deadline during the 2019 season. That continued throughout this offseason as contract negotiations faltered in Adams’ quest to become the highest-paid safety in the NFL.
At the end of the day, this was the only move Adams could make to get what he wanted.
Douglas and the Jets want to give Adams a new contract and have no intention of trading him. Joe Douglas even famously said he wanted to make Adams a “Jet for life.” Adams, though, wanted his new deal before this upcoming season after he made his second Pro Bowl and earned his first All-Pro selection. Those accolades, plus his impressive stats and status as a leader in the locker room and on the field, validate Adams’ desire to be paid earlier than most three-year players. The Jets disagree,and want to wait until after the 2020 season to pay Adams.
That timetable is why the rift widened, and why Adams publicly bashed the Jets this offseason multiple times while he waited for negotiations to heat up. The Jets opened up talks at the NFL combine earlier this year and told Adams they wouldn’t seriously negotiate until after the NFL draft in April. But Adams recently said he hasn’t seen any actual proposal and aired his frustrations on Instagram last week.
This trade request by Adams will attempt to force the Jets’ hand – one way or another – during an offseason of exasperation for the all-pro safety.
If the Jets’ reported stance on Adams is true, then the team will pay him now. If it’s not true, then he’s gone. Both scenarios are a win for Adams – he either gets his money or he gets to play for a winning team. Adams even reportedly won’t ask for an extension from a collection of teams if he’s sent there.
Many will vilify Adams for his decision to request a trade, especially to a playoff team, but it was the only move he could make given the state of his negotiations. Adams doesn’t have any leverage in his contract negotiations since the Jets control his contract through the 2021 season and for as long as through the 2023 season. For a player as good, young and vocal as Adams, this move is the closest he’ll get to control his own destiny as a three-year player. Adams knows the importance of earning long-term stability as quickly as possible – he watched his dad suffer a career-ruining injury less than two years into his NFL career.
Is the situation pretty? Absolutely not. It paints a selfish picture of a player who epitomized camaraderie and leadership on a mediocre Jets team that is 16-32 since Adams was drafted in 2017. But unless Adams publically spoke up, the Jets had no obligation to make any move to pay Adams for at least two years. Sure, Adams could hold out to force his point even further, but then he’d incur team fines and lose even more money. That would defeat the purpose of his quest. Players like Le’Veon Bell and Melvin Gordon tried missing games to get paid and that didn’t work out for them. It’s made even worse by the idea that the safety position is notoriously undervalued relative to other positions.
Neither side is “right” on this issue. Adams deserves to be paid like one of the best players in the league because he is. The Jets, meanwhile, need to make a decision that doesn’t decimate their financial status. If the Jets think the relationship with Adams is salvageable, they’ll work out an arrangement that either includes a new contract or the promise of a new contract in the future. In all likelihood, though, the Adams situation will play out like another former All-Pro Jets defensive back – Darrelle Revis – who the Jets traded away a season after he threatened to hold out.
There won’t be a clean conclusion with Adams right away, but the safety may have said it best at the end of his most recent Instagram rant.
“Maybe it’s time to move on!”