New York Jets: Criticism towards Jamal Adams is unwarranted

There are plenty of reasons to criticize the New York Jets after a dreadful 0-3 start but none of that criticism should be aimed at Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams.

Through three games, the New York Jets season certainly hasn’t gone as planned. Plagued by injuries and incompetence across the board, the Jets, who appeared to have a promising season ahead of them, now sit at 0-3 after three consecutive brutal performances.

Given the poor play of the team and the questionable coaching from Adam Gase and company, the criticisms, which have spread like wildfire, have been warranted. One player who should not be criticized at all, however, is Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams.

Since being drafted by the Jets with the No. 6 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, Adams has been nothing but a breath of fresh air for an organization in desperate need of change.

He’s served as a leader on and off the field, earning Pro Bowl honors in 2018 and constantly striving to improve the culture in the locker room.

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In addition, Adams wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s both an emotional player and an emotional person. He takes losses personally and there’s few, if any, players on the Jets roster who show the type of frustration that he does when he feels as if the team doesn’t live up to expectations.

This emotion that Adams possesses has led to a few criticisms and headlines throughout this season thus far. Towards the end of a Week 2 blowout against the Cleveland Browns, for example, Adams was pulled from the game following what he called two “bonehead” penalties.

Later that week, the 23-year-old voiced his frustrations on WFAN radio, saying that the team had benched him.

While he may not necessarily have been criticized for these comments, the situation certainly made headlines after it seemed more like he was taken out of a one-sided game just to calm him down.

Next, came the whole debacle with Adams reportedly taking “New York Jets” out of his social media profile bios and unfollowing the team’s accounts. The LSU product shrugged off and downplayed questions regarding the matter but it certainly sent many into a frenzy.

Some criticized Adams for bringing this upon himself while others questioned whether or not he was still all in with the Jets.

And most recently, Adams canceled his weekly spot with WFAN. The NY Post reported that it was due to his frustration over the questions he was asked regarding social media.

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This has led to even more criticism being aimed at the safety, with some even suggesting that it makes him look “soft” or that he is shying away from questions or criticism about the team’s poor start.

To use the word “soft” to describe Adams, however, is simply outrageous. In this writer’s opinion, Adams is likely just fed up and frustrated with losing, a topic he’s often discussed.

And while doing media comes with the territory, he’s likely had enough discussing the same topic week in and week out.

And given the position he’s in, that makes sense. Jamal Adams is the face of this New York Jets team. He’s the type of player that, regardless of the score, leaves it all out on the field.

There are plenty of reasons to criticize the New York Jets after a dreadful 0-3 start but none of that criticism should be aimed at Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams.

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