Jamal Adams has gone from potentially becoming a “Jet for life”, the words of his former general manager, not his own, to talking about retiring as a member of his new team.
How quickly things can change in this soccer league! After making it known that he wanted to exit the franchise that brought him to the NFL with the sixth overall pick in the 2017 draft, he’s ready to build his football home forever in the Pacific Northwest.
“My plan is to retire here,” Adams told reporters Thursday during his introductory press conference, according to Omar Ruiz of the NFL Network.
Adams was the brightest star in New York’s future, brighter even than the franchise’s quarterback. He was a fan favorite, winning two trips to the Pro Bowl and drawing roars from crowds in Orlando during Pro Bowl practice just for jogging.
You are about to enter a much noisier environment in Seattle.
“It’s so surreal to be around a great organization like Seattle,” Adams said in what can be read as a small opportunity for his former team, through Q13 Fox’s Aaron Levine. “Being coached by the Hall of Fame, play with the (future) Hall of Fame … I’m here to help and I can’t wait to get out with the 12 “.
The 12 will be more than happy to welcome one of the best young defenders in the NFL to a unit that already includes top linebacker Bobby Wagner. Adams said Thursday that he told Wagner “I am here to help him,” according to Ruiz.
“There is no starting role for me yet. I have to win it,” Adams said.
Leaving interpretive statements aside, Adams will have earned his job by simply walking out the door. The 2019 All-Pro team required multiple first-round picks to secure, and he will have a high-priced contract in no time.
He will probably be remembered in New York for his game-changing plays, his confidence and arrogance, and his discontent that eventually forced him out of town.
He made sure to make a key point clear Thursday: Despite the way things ended up on the opposite coast, it’s not problematic.
“I am here to play ball, I am not a distraction in the locker room,” Adams said. “I have never had problems in my life. I am far from being a problem.”
The only problem Adam plans to be is that of opposing offenses. He will work to become one with Wagner and the rest of Seattle’s defense from this training ground.
“How would you describe our bonding? It’s a cheat code, man,” Adams said of his joining Wagner in Seattle, through KOIN’s AJ McCord. “It is a cheat code.”
