Perhaps the most confusing aspect about the Seattle Seahawks' otherwise solid offseason was the team re-working Jamal Adams' contract. Prior to doing so, Seattle could have released Adams after 2023 and saved about $9 million. After all, Seattle had no idea when Adams was going to start playing this year or even how long he would stay healthy.
That has been Jamal Adams' main problem, of course: Not staying healthy. He missed all of 2022 after being hurt in Week 1. He returned in 2023 in Week 4 and has only missed one game since. But he certainly doesn't appear to have the same burst as he did prior to 2022.
This could be because he is still working his way back into football shape or that all the injuries he has had over the years have taken a toll and he will never be as explosive as he was in 2020 when he had 9.5 sacks for the Seahawks, setting a record for sacks by defensive back. He is definitely used differently in the Seahawks scheme as he used in blitzes much less than in 2020. But he remains a clear liability in one area.
Jamal Adams has massive problems in coverage
The knock on Adams when Seattle traded for him in 2020 was that while he was a fantastic and unique athlete, he wasn't overly great in coverage. In his Seattle seasons, his lack of ability to cover receivers hasn't been a massive problem because free safety Quandre Diggs has been excellent on the backend of the defense so Adams' flaw hasn't been as exposed as it should have been.
But as Diggs is having the worst season of his career in Seattle statistically, especially in number of interceptions, Adams has had to pick up the slack in coverage. He simply cannot. In eight games in 2023, he has allowed a passer rating when targeted on 106. That is the second-lowest mark of his career after his rookie season in 2017.
Adams has allowed 26 catches on 31 targets for 213 yards. He has allowed only one touchdown reception but that came at the worst possible time against the Dallas Cowboys when Adams got easily beat by Jake Ferguson and the touchdown put the Cowboys ahead and ended up being the game-winning score. Plus, of the 213 yards Adams has allowed, 145 of them are after the catch meaning he is either behind the receiver in their route or he misses an initial tackle. Seattle can no longer afford a strong safety who cannot cover well.
Jamal Adams special purpose is less special now
In 2020, by far Adams' best year with the Seahawks, he had 12 quarterback hits and the aforementioned 9.5 sacks. One way he got to these numbers is because he seemed to be gifted in knowing just when the ball would be snapped and then he could avoid would-be blockers on his way to chasing down quarterbacks. He also was blitzed 8 times a game on average.
His pressure numbers fell incredibly in 2021 from his 2018 through 2020 levels. In 2018 with the Jets, he had 22 total pressures, in 2019 he had 25, and in 2020 Adams had 34. But in 2021, even though he played the same number of games (12) as he did the season before, Adams had just 7 pressures, zero sacks, and 2 quarterback hits. So far in 2023, his numbers are 6, 0, and 1, respectively. Adams is no better now than he was in 2021.
Is he being blitzed less? Of course. This year he only blitzes about 3 times a game. But if does the match of 3 blitzes versus 8 blitzes, his numbers would still be nowhere close to how good he was in 2020. Much of Adams' uniqueness is derived from his pass rush ability and if he lacks real production, what is his use to the Seahawks really? Plus, Seattle cornerback Devon Witherspoon might simply be a better blitzer from the secondary anyway; he has one more quarterback pressure this year than does Adams.
So Adams is getting less pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Fine. Maybe he is more in a traditional safety role, but even at that, he is costing his team. His run defense grade is only 61.0, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), which is the lowest of his career in a season where he played more than one game. Also, he has missed 13.7 percent of his tackle attempts this year, by far the worst mark of his career.
Adams is not a good leader for a young roster
The last reason Seattle needs to move on from Jamal Adams is something cannot be valued in raw statistics. I used to think Jamal Adams was a team-first guy who did not cause too many issues in the locker room. He might showcase his skills while being injured, but at least he was a terrific teammate and one could see him cheering the team on the sidelines.
But maybe there is more to Adams than the glimpses we got of him on the sidelines. Twice this year Adams has acted angrily in a way that is surprising and saddening. Recently, of course, he reacted to a Jets reporters tweet about his poor play against the Cowboys by posting a photo of the reporter's wife on social media with a disparaging remark. Sure, maybe the reporter was a years' long troll toward Adams, but that appeared to all be about Adams' job, which is to play football. Adams cruelly made it personal.
Adams also had to leave Week 4 early - his first game back since Week 1 of 2022 - due to a concussion. After being checked out on the sidelines, Adams was seen screaming at the unaffiliated neurologist who had looked at him and ruled him out and Adams had to be restrained. While Adams' actions could have been from being concussed and not in full control, he has said things since that made it appear as if he was aware of how he was acting.
Jamal Adams simply isn't a voice the Seahawks should want in their locker room. The team is still trying to rebuild some and they have a young roster, especially among cornerbacks who share the DB room with the safeties. Seattle needs different veteran leadership than Adams. And even though Seattle did rework Adams' deal before the beginning of the season, the Seahawks could still release him this coming offseason and save a bit over $6 million.