Seahawks' Jamal Adams on Relationship With Jets, Adam Gase: 'No Hard Feelings'

Seattle Seahawks safety Jamal Adams cleared up his relationship with the New York Jets and head coach Adam Gase before facing his former team on Sunday

The end of Jamal Adams' tenure with the New York Jets may have been messy, but five months after the blockbuster trade that sent the All-Pro safety to Seattle, Adams made it clear that he has no hard feelings for his former team.

Addressing the media prior to facing New York on Sunday, Adams cleared the air regarding his relationship with Jets head coach Adam Gase. 

Even after publicly criticizing Gase previously this summer, the safety assured they had a "solid relationship" while he was in New York, but just weren't on the same page. 

"I don't hate Adam Gase," Adams said in a Zoom call with reporters on Friday. "I have no problem with Adam Gase, I just didn't feel he handled certain situations well as a head coach and that's just my opinion. Everybody is entitled to their opinion. Just like you guys are, everybody's entitled to their opinion and that's the world we live in. But like I said, I have no hate towards Adam."

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The fallout between Adams and the Jets is rooted in a dispute over contractual negotiations. The safety, already established as one of the best defensive backs in football through his first three seasons in the league, wanted to receive the respect he felt he deserved in the form of an extension. New York never progressed toward any sort of agreement that Adams deemed appropriate.    

"The guys that make the decisions over there, they just didn't value me like Seattle does and I appreciate that," Adams explained. "There's no hard feelings towards them. They had different views. I had a different view. But at the end of the day, I'm just happy to be where I am and I have an organization that believes in me, believes I can get it done and thinks highly of me so that's all I can ask for man it's just all about respect for me."

Adams later revealed he battled depression during his time with the Jets, something he reiterated on this week's teleconference.

Before being traded to the Seahawks—in a deal that gave the Jets two first-round picks—Adams called out his head coach. Looking back, Gase admitted this week that he was "surprised" at what the safety had said.

"I thought [our relationship] was good, but obviously he felt different," Gase told reporters. "I don’t know, I never had any poor interactions with him ... I’m not involved in [contract] talks. That’s kind of where his agent and front office guys got to go to work."

Adam Gase on his relationship with Jamal Adams prior to him being traded:

"I thought it was good, but obviously he felt different" pic.twitter.com/Bq0AyiQwLZ

— Jets Videos (@snyjets) December 10, 2020

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Now, all these months later, both parties appear content with how the ugly breakup transpired. 

Adams and the Seahawks (8-4) are poised for a deep playoff run this year while the safety is on pace to set the record for the most sacks by a defensive back in a single season. He said he has no regrets for how his departure from New York went as he's solely focusing on his future within the Seahawks organization.

Meanwhile, the Jets and Gase remain winless entering Week 14. That said, Gase believes his side has benefited from the Adams trade as well.

"I think both sides got what they wanted," he said. "I think at the end of the day, I think it will benefit both sides too."

Asked if he would shake Gase's hand on Sunday, sharing the field for the first time since last season, Adams wasn't opposed. When it comes to the Jets, from Gase to the fan base, he's got nothing but "respect and love."

"Listen, I'm at peace man. I'm a different guy. I'm really a different guy. I'm still gonna talk about noise. But I am at peace with it. I hope that this explains a little bit more of how I felt."

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