NY Jets: 3 potential trade packages for safety Jamal Adams

NY Jets could consider these three trade packages for star safety Jamal Adams.

The latest saga in the ongoing dispute between the NY Jets and star safety Jamal Adams has unfolded — this time with the most notable update to this point.

As first reported by ESPN’s Rich Cimini on Thursday, Adams has reportedly requested a trade from the Jets following months of frustration regarding his current contract situation.

We’re not going to break down the issue here. But what we are going to talk about is, what if the Jets actually trade Adams? What could they expect in return?

Now, it’s important to remember that the Jets aren’t just going to give Adams away. They hold all the leverage in this situation and have no reason to trade him for less than they feel he’s worth.

At the moment, the asking price seems to be right around a first and a second-round pick. You could substitute that second-round pick for a ready-made starter at a position of need as well. But based on all reports, that seems to be what it would take to get it done.

Whether teams will be willing to offer that or not is a different story.

We’ve done a few of these “trade packages” articles in the past and it’s always important to remain realistic with proposals.

So with that in mind, we tried to draw up packages from three different teams on Adams’ list of seven destinations that could feasibly be both offered by the team and accepted by the Jets.

Let’s take a look at those three proposals.

Next: 3. Jets trade for a Jamal Adams replacement

3. The NY Jets trade for a Jamal Adams replacement

Each of these trade offers is going to start with the baseline of a 2021 first-round pick and include a player since that appears to be what the Jets are looking for. And in this case, they manage to snag Adams’ replacement both for the present and the future.

The first-round pick is a given, but the real intrigue of this deal is Marquise Blair. Many may be unfamiliar with Blair, but the Seattle Seahawks drafted him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft with the hope that he could be their starting safety of the future.

He only started a handful of games in his rookie season, but he still received a good amount of playing time in sub packages and he performed very well when given the opportunity.

Blair finished the 2019 season with an excellent 78.3 Pro Football Focus grade which would have ranked 10th among all safeties if he played enough to snaps to qualify.

The former Utah star has the versatility to play both free safety and strong safety, although he’s proven to be better in coverage than run defense early in his career.

Nonetheless, the idea of adding Blair — who’s just 22-years-old — to be Adams’ short and long-term replacement on top of a first and fourth-round pick could be intriguing enough to force the Jets’ hand.

It isn’t the wide receiver or offensive lineman many are probably looking for, but the Seahawks are one of the few teams that could feasibly trade for Adams and pay him long-term.

This is a good trade even if it isn’t the flashiest on this list. Blair is a solid young player and the Jets would go into next offseason with a pair of first-round picks to address the offense without having to worry about a hole at safety.

Next: 2. The Jets land a young pass rusher

2. The NY Jets trade Jamal Adams for a young pass rusher

Marquise Blair is a good player, but if the Jets are going to trade Adams, they’ll be better off doing so for a player at a true position of need. And arguably no position has been “of need” for longer than edge rusher.

The Jets have been searching for an edge rusher for well over a decade now and the unit is arguably the weakest on the team. So if the team has an opportunity to land a young, promising pass-rusher in a trade for Adams, they might just pull the trigger.

The Philadelphia Eagles selected Derek Barnett with the No. 14 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft — eight picks after Adams was taken. And while Barnett hasn’t exactly been a bust to this point, it’s fair to say that he hasn’t lived up to expectations.

The 23-year-old has battled injuries throughout his career playing in just six games in 2018, but has steadily shown improvement both as a pass-rusher and has a run-defender. And that coincided with his best statistical season in 2019 where he totaled a career-high 6.5 sacks.

Barnett isn’t the player the Eagles hoped he would be, but he has all the talent to be a standout pass-rusher in the NFL, and his renewed bill of health combined with his consistent improvement provides hope that he could still reach his ceiling.

The Jets would still need to get a first back in return seeing as though they’ll still have to extend Barnett in a couple of years anyway. But it would be hard to argue with the haul of a first-round pick and a young, talented player at a major position of need.

Would the Eagles do it? They could certainly use an upgrade over Jalen Mills at strong safety. And perhaps the idea of stealing Adams away from a division rival (more on them in a moment) will be all the motivation they need.

Howie Roseman likes his defensive line depth, but he arguably likes his safeties even more.

Next: 1. The Jets trade for a budding star wide receiver

1. The NY Jets trade Jamal Adams for a budding star wide receiver

This trade proposal is hardly a new one — you’ve probably seen it before. But if the Dallas Cowboys are serious about making a run at Jamal Adams, this is far and away the most appealing offer the Jets could receive.

Michael Gallup is one of the best young receivers in the NFL and he would immediately become the team’s No. 1 wideout that they’ve been searching for. Fresh off a 1,107-yard campaign, Gallup would completely change the state of the Jets’ receiving corps.

Imagine a trio of Gallup, Denzel Mims, and Jamison Crowder with Breshad Perriman serving as a depth option. It’s impossible to overstate the significance of such a pick-up.

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But would the Cowboys really give up a 24-year-old receiver coming off a 1,000-yard season in just his second year in the NFL? It wouldn’t be ideal for them, but it isn’t completely out of the question either.

Dallas just used a first-round pick on Oklahoma wideout CeeDee Lamb and agreed to a massive five-year, $100 million extension with Amari Cooper in the offseason. They’ve already invested so much into the position — why not invest more into the secondary?

The loss of Byron Jones in free agency hurts and the Cowboys have been searching for a safety for quite some time now. Adams is a lot more valuable to the Cowboys than Gallup is, plain and simple.

And if a bidding war ensues between them and their previously-mentioned division rivals, then the price could go up.

Is this proposal wishful thinking? Perhaps. But we’ve certainly seen more lopsided trades in the NFL than this one. And the Cowboys might just feel inclined to make this one happen.