Jamal Adams has spent the last two offseasons making it abundantly clear that he'd welcome another opportunity as a member of the New York Jets. Adams campaigned for a reunion last offseason, and he doubled down this week during an exchange with a fan on Instagram.
The former All-Pro safety insisted he has already apologized for how he handled his exit from the organization, adding that he has tried to make a return happen but that the decision ultimately rests in the Jets' hands.
It's easy to understand why plenty of fans would have no interest in revisiting the Adams chapter. The LSU product forced his way out of New York in 2020, took shots at the organization and fan base on his way out the door, and watched injuries derail a career that was once on a legitimate Hall of Fame trajectory.
That history doesn't just go away, but neither does the fact that the Jets could actually use his help...at least from a strictly football perspective.
Adams isn't asking to return as the player who made three straight Pro Bowls in green and white. He's asking for another opportunity after reinventing himself in Las Vegas, where he spent last season playing linebacker instead of safety.
Considering where the Jets stand behind Demario Davis and Jamien Sherwood, it's probably at least worth having the conversation.
Jamal Adams could give the Jets a legitimate linebacker upgrade
Adams very quietly put together one of his best seasons in years last year with the Raiders. Not only did the former sixth overall pick stay healthy for the first time in years, but he was genuinely a quality backup linebacker for Las Vegas.
After appearing in just one game in 2022 because of a torn quad and playing only nine games in 2023, Adams finally made it through a full season with the Raiders.
He appeared in all 17 games, starting four and playing exclusively as a linebacker for the first time in his career after brief stops with the Titans and Lions in 2024. His month in Detroit also gave him a short opportunity to work under current Jets head coach Aaron Glenn.
And again, Adams was pretty solid in Vegas. He finished with a 67.3 Pro Football Focus defensive grade and a 69.2 coverage grade, both his highest marks since his final season with the Jets in 2019.
He also generated seven pressures on just 35 pass-rush snaps, showing he can still create problems as a blitzer, one of the traits that made him one of the league's most unique defensive players in his prime. Remember, this is the same guy who set the single-season DB sack record with 9.5 back in 2020.
Tackling remains his biggest concern at this stage. Adams earned a miserable 36.5 PFF tackling grade last season and missed 21.4 percent of his tackle attempts in 2025. He similarly missed 25.0 and 24.2% of his tackle attempts in 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Adams is far from a perfect NFL linebacker, and those tackling numbers are concerning, but he was able to provide value to the Raiders last season, and he could do the same for the Jets.
Demario Davis and Jamien Sherwood are locked in as starters entering training camp. Behind them, however, the depth chart consists of Mykal Walker, Kiko Mauigoa, and Marcelino McCrary-Ball.
Walker filled in admirably late last season, but he's also bounced around the league and started last year on the practice squad. Mauigoa showed flashes but struggled in limited defensive snaps, while McCrary-Ball is best served on special teams.
Adams could slide in as the primary backup behind Sherwood at weak-side linebacker while Walker and Mauigoa compete for snaps behind Davis at MIKE. He wouldn't have to carry the defense. He wouldn't even have to start. He'd simply have to continue doing what he showed he could do in Las Vegas.
The nostalgia for many (myself included!) is hard to ignore. Adams was the face of the franchise for three seasons before everything unraveled. Watching him return home as a humbled, disheveled version of his former self would be a fitting ending to a story that never received a proper one.
Of course, that wouldn't be the primary reason to sign him. From a purely football standpoint, Jamal Adams could offer value to this Jets roster, even in the big 2026.
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