Pros and cons of Seahawks potentially bringing back Jamal Adams

The 2024 season was a complete mess for safety Jamal Adams. He likely was not fully recovered from a horrible leg injury he suffered in Week 1 of the 2022 season and might have been a shell of himself. Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider mentioned after the season that Adams probably still wasn't ready to return in 2023 and was never full strength. Seattle did the right thing by releasing Adams, however.

Keeping Adams on the roster with a cap hit of $26 million would have been ridiculous. Possibly Adams is still capable of making an impact in the NFL, but he was going to be gravely overpaid next season. Still, that might be a reason for Seattle to bring him back because, well...they are already paying him $20 million in 2024. Re-signing him to a $1 million deal? That is still cheaper than he would have been.

But why would the Seahawks entertain bringing Adams back? He seemingly has lost any explosiveness. But maybe he would be better under a new defensive scheme.

Pros and cons of Jamal Adams coming back to the Seattle Seahawks

Pro: Mike Macdonald would know how better to use than Pete Carroll and Clint Hurtt

The assumption would be that if Adams does come back it is partly because Schneider and Macdonald have had discussions about how Macdonald could use Adams. Macdonald likes to have interchangeable players to better design what he is doing. At his best, Adams can play in the box or more as a traditional strong safety. In 2020, Adams had 9.5 sacks and then once teams adjusted to what he was doing, Seattle did not have an answer of how to re-adjust. This is likely Carroll's fault as he was in charge of the team over the tenures of the last two defensive coordinators.

Adams probably still has an intuitive knack for how to pressure quarterbacks. That was never his problem. His issue was in coverage and that is probably not going to change no matter who is in charge of the defense.

Con: Adams was a bad teammate in 2023

As bad as Adams was on the field at times over the last three years, the worst possible thing he could do is leave his teammates out to hang. Yet, ahead of Week 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Adams did just that. After learning he was not going to play (because of injury or ineffectiveness), Adams either chose to leave Lumen Field or stay at home. (Where he was initially remains unclear.)

No matter who a player is, you always support your teammates. Adams' action made it seem as if he thought he was bigger than the team. That cannot happen.

And maybe that does not happen under Macdonald who is less likely to let things slide than Carroll. Maybe Macdonald has a man-to-man conversation with Adams and Adams has a clearer understanding of his responsibilities as a teammate. But he might not ever understand that either.

Con: Adams is a one-trick pony

We know that Adams can pressure quarterbacks. In his one game in 2022, before he was injured, he was a bit of a menace to then-Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson. But even if he can still get to quarterbacks physically, that is apparently all he can do. He has never been good in coverage and he isn't big enough to move to linebacker full-time to become an edge rusher.

Is Adams worth taking up a roster spot when he only does one thing well? That is unlikely. Even if he accepts something close to the league minimum (and clearly, no other team is rushing to sign him), the roster spot is more valuable than Adams.

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