Seahawks Excuse Jamal Adams’ Absence
The Seahawks have excused safety Jamal Adams from this week’s mandatory minicamp for personal reasons, a source tells Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). Initially, his absence was believed to be contract-related, but that’s not quite the case. 
As a result, Adams will not be fined ~$290K for skipping the three-day minicamp. Still, the two sides still have some contract matters to hash out. Adams is currently playing on his fifth-year option, which means $9.86MM for the 2021 season. Meanwhile, he wants a new multi-year contract to position him as the highest-paid safety in the NFL.
That’s been Adams’ stance for several years, dating back to his time with the Jets. Desperate to get away from Gang Green, Adams agreed to table talks until a later date. With one year to go at a below-market rate, the future is now. But, on the plus side, Adams’ non-participation does not seem to be the start of a holdout.
The advanced metrics knocked Adams for his coverage and run D last year, but he was still a force with 9.5 sacks in just 12 games. The multiple-time Pro Bowler — 26 in October — was rock solid before last year’s injury-filled season. Between 2018 and 2019, only Vikings standout Anthony Harris graded out higher than Adams at safety, according to Pro Football Focus. Eddie Jackson (Bears) was No. 3 on the list, and he currently stands as one of the league’s top-paid safeties.
Jamal Adams Skipping Seahawks’ Minicamp
Jamal Adams is holding out. The Seahawks safety will not participate this week’s mandatory minicamp (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). 
The Seahawks acquired Adams and a fourth-rounder from the Jets last year for a 2021 first-round pick, a 2021 third-round pick, a 2022 first-rounder, and safety Bradley McDougald. Adams, of course, was embroiled in a longstanding contract dispute with the Jets. But, upon arrival in Seattle, he agreed to play on his existing deal, which meant a salary of just $3.59MM last year. Right now, he’s on course to make $9.86MM for 2021, thanks to his fifth-year option.
Broncos star Justin Simmons stands as the league’s highest-paid safety at $15.25MM per year. Meanwhile, Landon Collins leads the position in full guarantees at $44.5MM. Adams is definitely looking to top Simmons’ AAV, and his camp may also be pushing for a new watermark in guarantees.
Adams suffered a torn labrum and a groin injury last year, but he still showed his mettle as a dangerous playmaker. In 2020, Adams’ 9.5 sacks set a new single-season record for defensive backs — he did it in just 12 games. For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics had him as a middle-of-the-pack cover man and run defender.
By skipping minicamp, Adams will be subject to fines of ~$93K per day. That’s alright by the All-Pro safety, who is hoping to send a serious message to Seattle.
Sherman Steered Witherspoon To Seattle
- Richard Sherman surfaced on the Seahawks‘ radar recently, but he is taking his time on deciding his next team. The three-year 49ers corner did advise ex-teammate Ahkello Witherspoon to move to Seattle, however. The former Legion of Boom member told Witherspoon he would fit in well with the Seahawks, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic notes. Witherspoon signed a one-year, $4MM contract with the Seahawks in March. A third-round 49ers pick in 2017, Witherspoon made a 30 visit to Seattle ahead of the draft four years ago.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/14/21
Here are Monday’s minor moves:
Dallas Cowboys
- Reverted to IR: CB Stephen Guidry
Houston Texans
- Signed: LS Mitchell Fraboni
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: OL Wyatt Miller
San Francisco 49ers
- Reverted to IR: OL Justin Skule
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: CB Will Sunderland
Seahawks QB Russell Wilson Was Willing To Rework Deal
Russell Wilson may have denied that he asked for a trade, but he did make one acknowledgement today. The Seahawks quarterback told reporters that he approached the team about restructuring his contract (via ESPN’s Brady Henderson on Twitter).
[RELATED: Russell Wilson Denies He Requested Trade]
“We’ve talked about it,” Wilson said (via SI.com). “Pete and I have talked about it for sure. Me and him had a long conversation about it, I brought it up and he talked about it too and we both, you know, in the sense of just doing whatever it takes to win. … If the situation calls for it. Like I said, winning’s everything.”
This wouldn’t be the first time Wilson has reworked his deal; as Henderson notes, Wilson and the organization pulled off a similar move in 2017. For Wilson, the move makes plenty of sense; he’s helping the team’s books while taking little risk in converting signing bonus to salary. It’s a bit more complicated for the organization. While the team could have easily saved around $12MM in space this offseason by making a simple tweak to Wilson’s contract, the team would be compromising future flexibility in what’s already an uncertain future at the position.
Plus, as Pete Carroll noted, the organization found other ways to the open up the necessary cap space for signings and draft picks, making the whole conversation about a Wilson restructuring irrelevant.
“As always, we have all of the options available to us,” Carroll said recently (via Peter Socotch of NBC Sports Northwest). “We have talked about all of that, as we do every year. What are our possibilities? Where do we need to go? What do we need to do, if we get to certain levels of need to stay in compliance (with the cap)?”
Wilson still has three seasons and $69 million remaining on his contract. The 32-year-old earned his eighth-career Pro Bowl nod in 2020 after completing a career-high 68.8-percent of his passes for 4,212 yards and a career-high 40 touchdowns.
Russell Wilson Denies He Requested Trade
The Seahawks’ foundation may well be stronger than it appeared a few months ago. Late in an offseason in which Russell Wilson was mentioned in trade rumors, the 10th-year quarterback appears comfortably in the fold with his team.
Although Wilson said the list of acceptable trade destinations — Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, New Orleans — his agent revealed was accurate, the superstar quarterback added that he never requested a trade out of Seattle (Twitter link via the Seattle Times’ Bob Condotta). While identifying prospective trade partners can be considered in the trade-request realm, Wilson attempted to differentiate the two Thursday.
Wilson’s issues with Pete Carroll and the Seahawks’ offensive line came to light this offseason. But the 32-year-old passer said he and his head coach are in a good place and that he engaged in offseason talks with GM John Schneider and team president Chuck Arnold following the trade rumblings, per Condotta (Twitter links). Wilson attributed his winter comments about the offensive line to “frustration” and noted Thursday that he bears some of the blame for the protection issues, Condotta tweets.
Continuing to diffuse the situation, Wilson said he has “always wanted to play” in Seattle and that he would like to stay in the Pacific Northwest for the remainder of his career, Condotta and ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson note (Twitter links). Wilson, whom the Bears attempted to acquire via trade, is under contract through 2023.
The Seahawks gave Wilson input into their offensive coordinator search, which ended with Rams assistant Shane Waldron coming in to replace Brian Schottenheimer, and traded for seven-year Raiders starting guard Gabe Jackson. While Seattle’s offensive front does not look like a top-tier unit, Jackson’s presence should help. The Seahawks also selected a prospective No. 3 wide receiver — Western Michigan’s D’Wayne Eskridge — with their top draft choice.
Through a big-picture lens, this saga may not be finished. But for 2021, Wilson departure drama looks to have ceased. The seven-time Pro Bowler, who informed multiple Seahawks free agents he was not going anywhere, gave no indication any franchise-altering trade will take place in the near future.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/8/21
Today’s minor moves:
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: CB Amari Henderson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: WR Travis Toivonen
Tennessee Titans
- Released from injured reserve: OL Anthony McKinney
Seahawks S Ryan Neal Signs ERFA Tender
Ryan Neal is officially under contract. The Seahawks safety signed his exclusive rights free agent tender today, the team announced.
The 2018 undrafted free agent out of Southern Illinois bounced between the Eagles and Falcons to begin his career, but he found a home in Seattle in 2019. After appearing in only three games during his first year in Seattle, he took on a significantly larger role in 2020.
The 25-year-old started four games while filling in for Jamal Adams, and he finished the campaign having appeared in 13 games and 34-percent of his team’s defensive snaps. His final stat line included 44 tackles, three tackles for loss, five passes defended, and a pair of interceptions, including one that helped clinch a Week 3 victory over the Cowboys.
The Seahawks will return a similar depth chart in 2021. Neal will likely serve as Adams’ primary backup at strong safety, with Ugo Amadi and LaDarius Wiley waiting in the wings.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/7/21
Today’s minor NFL transactions:
Las Vegas Raiders
- Waived: G Marquel Harrell
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived: TE Nick Guggemos
Tennessee Titans
- Reverted to IR: OT Anthony McKinney
Julio Jones Fallout: Contract, Suitors, Titans
In a trade that will send one of the 21st century’s best players to the AFC, the Titans moved ahead of the pack in this pursuit via a firm offer. The Titans were the only serious Jones suitor, according to NBC Sports’ Peter King.
The Falcons spoke with several teams on Jones, though offers were scarce. At various points in this process, the team discussed the All-Pro wide receiver with every NFC West franchise. The Cardinals are a new entrant in this derby, but Albert Breer of SI.com notes neither they nor their NFC West rivals sent the Falcons firm offers.
The Titans initially proposed sending the Falcons a conditional third-rounder that could become a second, Breer adds, but Atlanta had Tennessee’s proposal of a second-rounder sans conditions on the table for a bit. Sunday-morning negotiations that ended with the teams agreeing to exchange later-round picks finalized the deal, according to King.
Tennessee’s willingness to absorb Jones’ $15.3MM guaranteed salary also outflanked other suitors, per Breer, who notes the Falcons were not interested in eating part of Jones’ 2021 salary in order to sweeten trade compensation. No first-round pick was offered, Breer notes, though at one point a first did come up as part of a potential pick swap.
A Jones-Falcons divorce first surfaced around draft time, and it became a deal framed around the new Falcons regime receiving cap relief. Given the salary component in these talks, that certainly is a key reason why Jones is Nashville-bound. But this separation began when Jones and the Falcons negotiated his wideout-record three-year, $66MM extension. Jones lobbied the Falcons for a new deal after the 2017 season; the Falcons refused and ended up making minor adjustments to his previous contract in 2018. The future Hall of Famer pursued the matter again in 2019. While the sides hammered out an agreement, the months-long negotiations — which ended with a Sept. 7 accord — took a toll on both parties. Jones communicated to the Falcons he wanted out in March.
Although the Ravens pursued several receivers this offseason and signed Sammy Watkins, their Jones interest ceased after the draft. Baltimore using first- and fourth-round picks on wideouts — Rashod Bateman and Tylan Wallace — ended its talks with its former division rival. Finances scuttled Seahawks involvement, King notes, adding the Patriots were also not serious players in this chase.
It sounds like the Falcons are preparing for a pricey Calvin Ridley extension. The 2018 first-round pick is now eligible for a new deal, and the Falcons are preparing for that expensive re-up, per Breer, by getting the Jones contract off their books. Though Atlanta is still eating some dead money from this trade, the team has some time on a Ridley extension. The Falcons picked up his fifth-year option in May, locking up Ridley through 2022.