The most overrated player on LA Rams NFC West rivals in 2022
By Bret Stuter
Sleepless in Seattle
There is little debate that the Seattle Seahawks are in full rebuild mode. So that blockbuster trade and Herculean contract for defensive back Jamal Adams appear to be more like a team-buster trade and an Atlas-holding-up-the-works type of deal right now.
The price tag to pry Adams away from the New York Jets escalated rather quickly. The terms were to send the Seahawks’ 2021 first-round and third-round picks, as well as the 2022 first-round pick to the Jets for Adams. The problem? At the end of the 2020 NFL season, the Seahawks finished with a 12-4 record but were shown the door in the Wildcard Round of the NFL Playoffs by the LA Rams. The issue? The Seattle Seahawks tumbled to a 7-10 record in 2021, but it was the Jets, not the Seahawks, who were on the clock with the 10th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Oops?! Either column A or column B
Adams is a decent enough player. But he was the perfect player at the back end of the Jets’ defense because that defense had a strong enough secondary that could provide adequate pass defense while Adams picked his spots to blitz the quarterback. Seattle was mesmerized with a defensive back that appeared to do it all but neglected to note what a strong supporting cast he had around him.
And so, Adams was a great pass rusher in 2020 for the Seahawks and a solid pass defender in 2021. But he is an either-or, not a both-and defensive back. Because his history had been about calling his shots, he took a few risks and allowed four touchdowns against him in 2021.
The Seattle Seahawks purchased Jamal Adams from the Jets with all of the bells and whistles. But when the team opened the box, they discovered that Adams can have bells mode or whistles mode, but not both in their defense.