The circumstances under which a Jamal Adams extension can work
This is a guest post written by Curtis Allen
With the initial rush of free agency passing and the Seahawks making a commendable effort to fill some needs while still maintaining some salary cap sanity — and a brief pause while the Seahawks consider their options with Russell Wilson — some focus has shifted to the other big off-season question.
Whether to extend Jamal Adams.
The value of Adams’ role on the Seahawks’ defense and a possible extension has been discussed extensively and in great detail this offseason on the blog:
Rob has also been invited onto the local airwaves to articulate the talking points of the discussion – one that many are brushing aside far too easily:
The Seahawks themselves have not yet signalled much in the way of their intentions towards Adams this off-season.
There has been no trade talk surfacing, nor has there been any reports that the team has explored the framework of a potential extension with Adams’ agent.
Still, it does feel like there is an air of inevitability to an extension. Adams is a very talented player and the Seahawks made an extraordinary investment in trade capital to acquire him.
Those points, along with a lack of impact defensive talent on the roster combined with Pete Carroll’s season-long praise for Adams (and for John Schneider for acquiring him) present a persuasive argument that he will be a long-term fixture in Seattle for the next few seasons.
With that in mind, I thought I would try a different tack. Rather than discussing why the Seahawks should trade Adams, let’s take a brief walk through how the team could make a potential extension work out beneficially.
Keep in mind this is not an endorsement of an extension. But rather an exploration of a future where Adams is on the roster and taking that route has proven successful.
Several things need to happen in order for those two things to become a reality:
1. Health must no longer be a factor in Adams’ play.
That may seem harsh.
Frankly, there is simply no way to ‘guarantee’ that a player will be healthy.
Overall health is only one piece of the puzzle though, and that is not the area that needs dramatic improvement.
Adams admirably fought through groin, shoulder and finger injuries in 2020. There is no doubting they were painful, but injuries had a noticeable effect on his play last year. Too big an effect if we are really being honest.
Goal line tackles that should have been made on critical touchdown runs in both the Week 10 loss and the playoff loss against the Rams.
Easy interceptions that were dropped.
It could be argued that the Seahawks would have been better off with Adams on the bench and healthier players on the field.
Put in the most simplistic terms, a strong safety’s job is to make tackles and defend passes. If Adams could not handle those basic responsibilities when nursing an injury with even a reasonable degree of effectiveness – let alone with star level play – he should not be on the field.
The pressure to play him when injured will only grow under the weight of a big extension. He must be able to demonstrate that he can play well when not 100%. That is the price of a huge contract.
Every player is going to be banged up from time to time. What makes a player a true warrior is not simply telling the press ‘there is no way I am missing this game’, lobbying his coach to play him, and then taking the field.
It is not allowing injuries to overly affect his play.
A vast improvement in this area is needed in order to justify the Seahawks making a second large investment in him.
Without improvement, the Seahawks put themselves in a difficult spot with Adams. They cannot bench him every single time he gets banged up. Nor can they afford to play him and watch him miss key opportunities to affect the outcome of the game because he is not completely functional.
2. Adams must raise the level of his overall game.
He proved that he has speed and quickness around the edges. Adams made decent use of the blitz packages the Seahawks set for him with 9.5 sacks and a forced fumble.
But there is so much more that needs improvement in order to provide a value to the team that would match a pricey commitment.
There were far too many fundamental areas Adams did not excel in during the 2020 season:
-His coverage ability (he had a 105 passer rating allowed)
-Creating turnovers (he had one turnover created)
-Being a sure tackler (he had 9 missed tackles – almost 10% of his tackle opportunities)
The poor raw counting numbers he logged in 2020 cannot be merely shrugged off with proclamations that Adams ‘brings energy to the defense’ or is ‘the ultimate competitor.’
It is not asking too much for these areas to dramatically improve. Immediately.
They may not have to improve to superstar levels in order to justify a large contract, but there is no excuse for them to be league average.
Particularly in coverage.
George Kittle and Tyler Higbee are not going anywhere. Neither are Cooper Kupp and Deebo Samuel. Kyler Murray had over 400 yards of offense when Adams was hurt in Week 7.
The Seahawks desperately need an answer to keep these players from wrecking games.
Kittle in particular was name-checked by Carroll when talking to the press after acquiring Adams. He must be better in this area. Improvement is not optional.
A marked improvement in the non-blitzing parts of Adams’ game will relieve much of the pressure to perform as a defense and make the times he is screaming off the edge all that more effective.
Even his tackles for loss, QB hits and pressure stats could stand to improve given how much the Seahawks packaged blitzes for him.
A clear possibility exists that with the strange offseason and the disaster of an early regular season on defense, when combined with his injuries, demonstrate that the Seahawks did not have a proper opportunity to really integrate all of Adams’ skills and abilities into their offense in 2020.
A second year in the system and familiarity with his teammates will likely provide an improvement in his overall impact.
A healthy increase in pay must be accompanied by a healthy improvement on the field.
Related to his overall play, we come to our next point…
3. Ken Norton and Pete Carroll must employ more creativity in his use.
Frequently the use of Adams devolved into a simple, predictable use: Adams on the edge pre snap, with a linebacker also blitzing to draw coverage. That worked in some fashion in 2020 but teams now have a whole season of tape to prepare and counteract that setup.
More varied looks to keep the offense guessing in 2021 is vital.
The Seahawks have made commendable progress in bolstering the defensive line. But they still have needs there. More of an interior pass rush presence is on the wish list with Jarran Reed departing.
If they can consistently rush with four down linemen, this opens up all kinds of possibilities for the Seahawks to use Adams all over the box. His blitzing will not be the sole way the defense gets pressure on the quarterback. It would instead become the final straw that pushes the opposing offense into bad decisions and could really elevate the unit to complement an explosive offense and dynamite special teams.
Creativity has never been Ken Norton’s strong suit. But imagine the possibilities of a return to getting rush with the standard package.
The linebackers are freed up to roam the field and seek out tackles cleanly. Adams can be used to rush from one side and direct runners right into the lanes where Wagner and Brooks are just waiting to take them down.
How about a return to the standard defensive strategy? Use Adams and the linebackers as heat-seeking missile tacklers on first and second down. Keep things in front of you and force the team into third and longs.
Then deploy Adams as a blitzer from all kinds of different areas.
How about taking advantage of Ugo Amadi’s blitzing potential? He has shown some flashes in the past. Line up Adams opposite Amadi at the nickel and keep the quarterback guessing which side the blitz is coming from.
If you refuse to be pigeonholed into a position and insist on being called a “weapon” as your preferred position term, you need to be used more creatively than what we have seen from him.
In truth, there are all kinds of ways to use Adams effectively. The only thing limiting the Seahawks is imagination.
4. The contract must be reasonable and not cripple the Seahawks’ salary cap.
This one seems obvious and doesn’t need too much explanation.
However, there are some wrinkles where the Seahawks could make a Jamal Adams extension far less painful than it would appear at the initial reporting.
Guaranteed money will be a key factor.
A couple of recent contract extensions for defensive backs are an interesting guide for comparison.
-Budda Baker got $33million guaranteed
-Jalen Ramsey got $43million guaranteed
The way they are structured is very intriguing.
Both got a nice signing bonus, but they only have two seasons of guaranteed salary. The salary changes to non-guaranteed right about the time their cap hits start to get really serious.
So both can be cut, traded or have their contract renegotiated after two years to get cap relief with only the prorated bonus portion as dead cap money. Or if they have maintained their top-level play and the market and cap have outgrown their deals, the teams have a not-unreasonable contract on their hands.
Furthermore, both will still be fairly young when those options materialize, which means they will likely still have decent trade value.
If the Seahawks do not overspend on an Adams extension and it has similar terms to these two deals, it will not hinder the team to such an extent as to render them unable to operate effectively.
Be careful not to overreact if you hear the Seahawks have signed Adams to a 5-year $100million contract. Wait until you hear the structure of the deal to really see how this contract works out. At the end of the deal, it could actually be a 3-year, $40 million deal which is much more palatable.
The Seahawks could even tack a void year or two onto the deal and lessen the 2021-2023 cap hits enough to make further moves.
5. There must be internal roster improvement.
A strong argument for trading Adams is the desperate need to recoup draft picks and infuse the roster with cheap effective talent. This cannot be argued – the Seahawks need more in order to take the next step.
Between trading a lot of capital for Adams and tying a healthy portion of their salary cap to him with a possible extension, the Seahawks will be actively deciding that they need to find value and production in other places.
One such place is right in front of them.
Making more hay with what the team already has on the roster could blunt some of that need.
Marquise Blair needs to make an impact, whether at nickel, free safety or taking an occasional series for Adams.
Jordyn Brooks needs to convert first round talent and a reasonable rookie year into solid second year production.
The corners have to be far better in single coverage than they were in 2020. Another corner added to the roster could go a long way.
Kicking the can down the road on the offensive tackle situation cannot backfire. Duane Brown and Brandon Shell need to be on the team beyond 2021.
****
All five of these things must experience at least a solid degree of success if a Jamal Adams extension is to have a puncher’s chance at being a sound investment.
The possibilities are there, but both parties must understand a contract extension is just the beginning of a journey together. It will require a strong commitment from both sides to improve if it is to be successful.
If you missed Rob’s three round mock draft video yesterday, check it out here:
You can now support Seahawks Draft Blog via Patreon by clicking the tab below.