The Seattle Seahawks have added more new players to their roster this offseason than they have retained their own free agents. Are there any remaining players who might still come back to the Seahawks in 2024?
Former NFL quarterback Brock Huard believes so, and it’s certainly an intriguing perspective.
“It’s not safety Quandre,” Huard remarked. “I don’t anticipate Quandre returning here.”
It pertains to a safety position in a different sense.
“There’s still some chance, perhaps at linebacker, with Jamal Adams,” Huard mentioned.
Adams, aged 28, was released a week before free agency began and is still without a team.
Although he has primarily played as a safety throughout his career, Adams’ most impactful performances often occurred near the line of scrimmage, where he excelled in run defense and blitzing the quarterback.
The composition of the Seahawks’ linebacker corps will undergo significant changes this year, with last year’s starters Jordyn Brooks and Bobby Wagner departing, and Seattle signing Tyrel Dodson and Jerome Baker to one-year contracts.
Huard highlights the strengths of the Seahawks’ new linebackers compared to Wagner and Brooks.
“Huard pondered, “Could Jamal Adams return as a linebacker exclusively? Is that something feasible under a new coaching staff and regime?”
Adams’ previous head coach in Seattle, Pete Carroll, has departed from the team. The Seahawks are now led by Mike Macdonald, the former defensive coordinator in Baltimore.
“If there’s truly no other team in this market willing to take a chance on Adams,” Huard continued, “we know from Mike Macdonald’s history that he’s taken chances on veteran players before and has seen significant production from them.”
The Seahawks traded two first-round picks and a third-round pick for Adams before the 2020 season, following his impressive performances with the New York Jets that earned him two All-Pro selections.
In his debut season with the Seahawks, Adams achieved second-team All-Pro honors, registering 9.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss despite missing four games due to injury.
Following that successful season, Adams and the Seahawks agreed to a lucrative four-year contract worth up to $72 million, making him the highest-paid safety in NFL history at the time. However, Adams faced a series of injuries thereafter, causing him to miss significant playing time: five games in 2021, 16 out of 17 games in 2022, and eight games in 2023.
Upon his release, Adams still had two years remaining on his contract, resulting in a substantial dead cap hit for the Seahawks in 2024.
“They are certainly well aware of his injury history over the past four years,” Huard remarked. “As we approach and go through OTAs and beyond, while the safety position is accounted for, there are still uncertainties surrounding the linebacker position. If they don’t secure a linebacker in the draft and Jamal Adams remains available and willing to play in that role, I don’t believe that option is entirely ruled out.”
