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C.J. Mosley had to wait . . .
In 2019, the Jets signed free agent linebacker C.J. Mosley to a massive contract.
Mosley, the 2014 first-round pick of the Baltimore, played his first four seasons on his rookie contract, and then his fifth season on the fifth-year option picked up by the team.
Then in 2019, he got a massive second-deal, after hitting the free agent market.
That is how it works for many first-round picks.
Jets safety Jamal Adams, also a first-round pick, is looking for a huge new contract after his third season, and is holding out of the team’s virtual off-season program to get one.
And he’s been very focal on Twitter expressing his discontent with the team.
We talked yesterday about his supports for the somewhat surprising decision of the Cleveland Browns to start talking to the agent of DE Myles Garrett about a new deal.
“Well deserved,” Adams tweeted about the ESPN report about Garrett. “I can’t even get my first proposal that they said they would send over in January. I was called ‘selfish,’ though! A lot of talk, no action.”
As for “first proposal that they said they would send over in January,” this is now a fly in the ointment. The Jets have no commented on the veracity of this claim, but if it’s accurate, why haven’t they sent over a proposal? They probably won’t comment on this because they don’t want to get into a public pissing match with the player.
Perhaps this was a miscommunication. Maybe somebody from the Adams’ camp misinterpreted something Joe Douglas said regarding a proposal. Why would Douglas say he was going to send over a proposal and then not do it? Not taking sides here, but it’s hard to believe the Jets’ new GM would do that.
Look, this is a very messy situation, there is no way around that. It’s hard seeing Adams playing this year on the fourth-year of his rookie contract, and not being terribly disgruntled the entire season, and if he’s terribly disgruntled all year, it could impact the Jets’ locker room.
Douglas is obsessed with building a strong football culture, and having a prominent, outspoken player on defense pissed off all season, could impact that culture. Remember, Adams isn’t just outspoken in person, but also on Twitter, which is a big communication forum for millennials.
As we have mentioned before, Douglas needs to be careful with how he handles the Adams’ contract, because if he caves to Adams now, and gives him a monster deal after three years, it sets a precedent for other Jets first-round picks to follow suit, like Quinnen Williams and Mekhi Becton. Their agents will say after three years, “We want a new deal like Adams.”
It’s very rare for NFL teams give new deals to first round picks after three years.
And to be blunt about this, Adams was the leader of a really bad Jets secondary the last three years, too often a dysfunctional mess against the pass.
Obviously not entirely blaming Adams for this, because a lot of the issues were at corner, but he hasn’t emerged yet as an elite coverage safety, and some might argue it’s not best idea for an NFL GM to break the bank on a safety whose finest work is in the box, especially with the NFL turning into a passing league. We aren’t saying he’s a bad coverage safety, just not elite, yet.
So if this continues to be a real ugly situation, Douglas might need to explore a trade, sooner, rather than later, and we will get into trade options on Wednesday.
There’s a team that would be a perfect spot, and it doesn’t start with a “D.”
June 16, 2020
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