Here's When the Cowboys and Jets Will Revisit Their Jamal Adams Trade Ideas
FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys' hunger for help at safety was revealed last October at the NFL Trade Deadline when they offered a first-round pick and cornerback Anthony Brown in trade for New York Jets star safety Jamal Adams.
The hunger has not been satisfied.
At the time, Dallas offered too little, and the Jets - maybe gauging the market without any serious intention of doing a deal - asked for too much, at different times requesting a first-, a second- and a third-rounder plus the involvement of an All-Pro offensive lineman, Zack Martin or Tyron Smith.
In that sense - when you look at the gap between the two proposals - it's an exaggeration to say a deal was "close.''
But it's not an exaggeration to say the Cowboys will take another stab at this, with a keen eye toward how the Jets' contract extension talks with Adams progress - or don't progress.
Adams, 24, is an LSU product and a Carrollton native who still spends a lot of time in DFW, a place he'd surely put on his list of future destinations. The Jets, of course, get first crack at retaining their top pick (sixth overall) in the 2017 NFL Draft, and as he enters the final year of his rookie deal, negotiations will heat up soon.
But at what point will Adams and the Jets conflict (again)? Probably when Adams' side asks to be the highest-paid safety in the NFL, a desire that will be fueled by the fact that Chicago Bears free safety Eddie Jackson just became the highest-paid player at the position after signing a four-year, $58.4 million extension that includes $33 million in guaranteed money.
Are the Jets prepared to go there? Are the Cowboys?
“As all of you know, Jamal is an amazing player,” Jets GM Joe Douglas said. “We saw what he did all year ... He did so many good things. He’s a special guy.”
The Cowboys can't say it out loud, of course. But they agree. How to fit a new $14-mil safety into the cap is a challenge; we already know Dallas is reluctant to fit an existing cornerback, Byron Jones, into a "going-rate'' salary of $15 mil APY.
But back in October, the Cowboys' Big Calculator guys obviously had it figured out. And if the Jets can't do so now? There will be trade talks, Dallas' hunger for help on defense trying again to get satisfied.
