Having missed a quartet of contests with a groin injury and now dealing with a shoulder ailment with his team amid a two-game skid, safety Jamal Adams is still happy and relieved to be just where he is with the Seattle Seahawks.
Traded from the New York Jets to the Seahawks in July, Adams desired a new contract, but, upon looking back recently, he was forthcoming that moving on from New York was about far more than a new deal.
"I fought depression in New York," Adams said on the "All Things Covered” podcast, via the New York Post. "And I'm man enough to say it. I came home after a tough loss and just sat in my room in the dark -- no phone, no TV. (My dad) hated to see me like that. It killed my pops so much. ... He was calling my agent at the time and saying, 'Hey man, I don't like seeing my son like this. I need him out of this situation.' It took a toll on my life outside of football."
Adams is now on a 6-3 Seahawks squad tied for first in the NFC West, having left behind -- aside from continuing conversations regarding it -- a Jets team all alone in last in the NFL at 0-9. During his three seasons with the Jets, Adams established himself individually, but New York had fewer than the Seahawks' six wins currently in two of those three campaigns.
"They do not want to win," Adams said of the Jets. "Let's be honest, the Jets were the laughingstock. (In Seattle), this is how the NFL is supposed to be. This is the dream I was dreaming."
Adams still contends he wanted to bring life to the franchise and was ready to lock up a long-term deal, but the disrespect was too much to take. And now, looking back, he realizes his love for what he does on the football field wasn't being fulfilled as part of a franchise seemingly in a never-ending state of reconstruction.
"I simply told them, 'Hey man, if you guys want to keep me here to be a Jet for life, let's sit down and talk.' This is after the fact they told me, 'We wanna offer you an extension.' ... I felt like I was being disrespected," Adams said.
Now, Adams is doing his best -- 35 tackles and 5.5 sacks in five games -- to rebuild a struggling defense. But it's a far different type of rebuild with a contender in the Pacific Northwest, 3,000 miles removed from the chaos in Gotham.
"Money's a plus, but I love the game of football. I love what I do," Adams said. "I was sick of hearing 'the rebuild year.'"
Thursday's marquee NFC West showdown between the Cardinals and Seahawks kicks off in Seattle at 8:20 p.m. ET and airs on NFL Network, FOX and Amazon Prime Video.
