Opponent Scouting Report: Jamal Adams is a Potential Game-Wrecker
After a long offseason, week one football is almost here for the Indianapolis Colts. The first game of the year is not an easy one by any means, as the Seattle Seahawks come into town fresh off of a playoff appearance in 2020.
When looking at the Seahawks' roster in preparation for this match-up, they are certainly a "sum of their parts" type of roster. Russell Wilson is obviously one of the best quarterbacks in the league , but after that, the roster is filled with a lot of quality players who simply do their job.
On defense, the Seahawks do have one of the best safeties in the league in Jamal Adams. Adams had a phenomenal season in 2020, despite missing time due to injury and having to learn a whole new system. He finished the year with 83 tackles, 11 tackles for a loss, 14 quarterback hits, 9.5 sacks (an NFL record for sacks by a defensive back), and three forced fumbles.
With the Colts' likely needing to put up some scores to keep up with Wilson and the Seahawks' offense, I decided to dive into the game of Adams and talk about why scheming around him will be vital for the Colts on Sunday.
Energy/Hustle
While Adams was eased into a new defense last year, the Seahawks' defensive coaches did a great job of fitting him into a role where he could simply attack opposing offenses. Adams was able to thrive in this role with his elite energy and motor on each and every snap.
Here is what Matty F. Brown of Seahawks Maven (and one of the brightest football minds I know) had to say about Adams' and his energy on defense:
The root of Jamal Adams’ game is his motor. Low motor players kinda gaslight you into thinking that jogging on the backside of a play is normal behaviour out on the field. Adams reminds you of what a high motor looks like. Adams is everywhere out on the field, his energy is infectious to teammates and coaches.
When turning on the film, it is easy to see Adams' involvement in every play. This clip below was the best example, as he flies across the backside of the play to make the touchdown-saving tackle.
Blitzing
As I mentioned above, Adams broke the single-season record for sacks by a defensive back in 2020-- and he did that while playing just 12 games. This is the area where I am most concerned with the match-up against the Seahawks.
The Seahawks are one of the more chaotic blitzing teams in the league. They utilize a lot of Dick LeBeau-esq fire blitzes and fire zones in order to get quick pressure despite only rushing four or five pass rushers.
Adams is a huge reason why they have success with these blitzes. His speed off of the edge is a major asset, and he is virtually unblockable in one on one situations with tight ends or running backs.
While it is easy to simply slide the left or right tackle out to block Adams, the Seahawks do an excellent job of simulating interior pressure by bringing up the linebackers to the 'A' gaps and force blocking assignments to look inside. That slight hesitation to peak inside is all that Adams needs to fly by for a sack.
The Colts can mitigate this with the quick passing game, but this is a major concern for a team starting a backup left tackle and a brand new quarterback-- one that struggled with pressure last year to boot.
Run Defense
Adams is a major threat in the run game. The Seahawks were one of the best run defenses in the league in 2020, allowing just 3.9 yards per carry against on the year.
Adams is a huge part in their success in this area, and he plays multiple roles on the defense against the run. He can play as a two-high safety, a linebacker, or even come down into the box and play off of the edge.
Here is what Brown had to say about Adams coming down into the box against the run/against the play-action pass:
Adams’ blitzing is also used by the Seahawks to solve schematic issues, such as an offense moving away from the pocket with a bootleg or getting into heavier personnel and running duo/crunch to outnumber Seattle’s front the point of attack
So, while it may be easy to say that the Colts should combat the fire blitzing Seahawks by just running the ball, they are tough to beat in that area as well. This is a tough defense that makes life hard on opposing quarterbacks, and it is all led by Adams.
How the Colts Can Attack Adams and the Seahawks' Defense
Preferably, the Colts opt to throw the ball away from Adams on Sunday. There are a lot of naysayers of Adams' game that think he struggles in coverage, however he was mostly limited a year ago due to the fact that the team didn't have time to properly acclimate him to the defense.
Here is what Seahawks' Defensive Coordinator Ken Norton had to say about Adams' earlier this offseason:
He came into a new situation last year, didn't know a lot of the defense, kinda learned it really fast. We've had an offseason with him now, and he's been able to learn all the coverages at a slow pace because he hasn't been out there. So you'll see more of a balanced guy, not just a blitzer. You'll see a blitzer as well as a cover guy, as well as a guy that's able to play both sides, so he will certainly be more well-rounded.
So, for the Colts, it isn't as simple as just saying attack him in coverage. What will be key for the Colts is how they attack the rest of the secondary. The Seahawks have a young group of defensive backs that can be exploited a bit down the field.
The best way combat this Seahawks defense is to utilize all parts of the field in the passing game, while keeping more blockers in to give Carson Wentz more time to throw. Heavy usage of the screen and RPO game to limit the blitzes, while attacking the outside hashes with cover-three beaters and Hi-Lo concepts would be the best plan of attack.
This defense is a tough match-up for the Colts, but it is certainly beatable. The team will need Wentz to bring his A game on Sunday to beat Jamal Adams and the Seattle Seahawks.
Follow Zach on Twitter @ZachHicks2.
