Jamal Adams opens up about career changing injury after signing with the Titans
NASHVILLE – Newly signed Tennessee Titans safety Jamal Adams has seen the highest of highs and the lowest of lows throughout his NFL career. With the Seattle Seahawks in 2020, Adams broke an all-time NFL record by recording 9.5 sacks in the season as a defensive back. He was a first-team All-Pro and had been […]
NASHVILLE – Newly signed Tennessee Titans safety Jamal Adams has seen the highest of highs and the lowest of lows throughout his NFL career.
With the Seattle Seahawks in 2020, Adams broke an all-time NFL record by recording 9.5 sacks in the season as a defensive back. He was a first-team All-Pro and had been selected to three consecutive Pro Bowls.
But over the last few seasons, Adams has suffered through some serious injuries that have brought him to rock bottom. Now with Tennessee in 2024 and reunited with Dennard Wilson, Adams is hoping to get a fresh start and climb back up the NFL ranks.
While he now feels fully healthy and ready to go, those injuries from the past are something Adams will still carry with him. As Adams said in an interview with Mike Keith on The OTP (Official Titans Podcast), the humbling experience gave him a new appreciation for the game of football.
In the first game of the 2022 season, Adams tore his quad. The injury required season-ending surgery. It also required Adams to be in a cast for nearly five months.
"20 weeks if not a little bit more. That was a time, it brought me down as far as just being very humbling. Forget the game of football, that's life situations. Not being able to walk, not being able to use the restroom by myself or shower by myself. That was always tough for me," Adams shared.
"Missing a year of football definitely took a toll on me. I knew I was going to get back out there, it was just going to take a lot of hard work. Mentally I had to heal. I'm in a way better place now. I'm just excited for the opportunity. I'm excited for the journey," the 28-year-old Adams added.
While Adams worked hard to recover and get back on the field in 2023, he was still a far cry from the All-Pro safety he once was. Perhaps we can attribute his struggles to the lingering injuries and amount of time he spent away from the game.
"Going into 2023 after my injury, me knowing I wasn't really fully healthy, I knew I had to sacrifice and go out there and try my best," Adams said about his 2023 campaign in Seattle. "I did what I could. But eventually, that knee is just not going to hold up if it's not ready."
Adams did not make his 2023 season debut with the Seahawks until Week 4. He was then placed on Injured Reserve in Week 4 with a knee strain that ended his season prematurely. The knee issues Adams experienced in 2023 were likely a residual effect of the quad injury of 2022.
For me, this is what makes the signing of Adams such an intriguing move for Tennessee. While he has not played his best football in years, I don't believe we've seen a truly healthy version of Jamal Adams in quite some time. We may continue to never see that version of Adams with the Titans this fall. But it definitely would not surprise me if the quad injury played a part in the lack of production.
With another full offseason to get healthy and a defensive coordinator in Dennard Wilson who knows how to use Adams, I think there's legitimate upside here. There's a chance the Titans are getting a healthy, hungry, and humble version of Jamal Adams in 2024 on a one-year bargain contract. I like the sound of that.
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