National Football League

Seahawks Jamal Adams flashes potential in new role: NFC West stock watch

Published Oct. 18, 2023 3:07 p.m. ET

The Seattle Seahawks finally got a glimpse of what their defense could look like with a healthy Jamal Adams in the secondary.

And the 28-year-old safety played pretty well in Week 6. Adams finished with four combined tackles — including a tackle for loss — and a quarterback hit in Seattle's 17-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

Adams played 45 defensive snaps (85%). But what was interesting was how Seahawks defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt moved him around the field.

According to Next Gen Stats, Adams played 17 snaps as a deep safety, four snaps as an edge player, 14 snaps aligned as a linebacker and 10 snaps aligned as a slot defender.

Adams had played just nine defensive snaps in his first game back in over a year after suffering a torn quad in the regular season opener against the Denver Broncos in 2022. Adams suffered a concussion against the New York Giants in Week 4 and had to leave the game. But after Seattle's bye week, he was cleared for practice and returned to the field on Sunday.

"We're really excited for him and for us because he played well," Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll told reporters this week. "We moved him around quite a bit and he handled all of that well, now we're getting going and we'll start building on it."

Adams was part of a Seattle defense that held an explosive Cincinnati offense led by Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase to just 17 points and 214 total yards last week.

"Obviously, we come out and we have a mission," Adams told reporters after the game. "We got started a little slow, kind of putting ourselves in a hole as far as penalties, killing ourselves. But I felt like we finished the game strong. I felt like we came out there and we had swagger, we had juice. But that's just Seattle. That's just what we do. That's our DNA."

The return of Adams to Seattle's defense highlights this week's NFC West Stock Watch:

Rising

Jamal Adams, Seahawks: Seattle's much-anticipated use of three safeties finally took shape against Cincinnati. According to Next Gen Stats, the Seahawks used at least five DBs on 52 of the 53 defensive plays against the Bengals, allowing just four yards per play.

The Seahawks have played with at least five defensive backs on 88 percent of their plays this season, according to Next Gen Stats. And even though they have smaller players on the field, Seattle's numbers as a run defense have improved. The Seahawks are tops in the NFL in run defense, allowing just 3.2 rushing yards per play.

However, that group will be tested by one of the better running teams in the NFL when the Arizona Cardinals travel to Lumen Field this weekend.

Kyren Williams, Rams: The Notre Dame product had a career-high 158 yards on 20 carries in L.A.'s victory over the Cardinals last week. Williams is No. 13 in the NFL with 561 scrimmage yards and seven total touchdowns.

However, Williams suffered an ankle injury late against Arizona and could be out a few weeks, meaning Ronnie Rivers and Zach Evans are the next men up for the Rams. Los Angeles also signed Royce Freeman from the practice squad to the active roster, signed Myles Gaskin off the Minnesota Vikings practice squad to the team's active roster and brought back Darrell Henderson Jr. to the practice squad.

'We're still searching for that complete game' — Matt Stafford speaks on Rams win over Cardinals

Tyler Higbee, Rams: Rams head coach Sean McVay credited the 30-year-old tight end for his team's ability to run the ball effectively in the second half against Arizona.

Higbee has not been involved as much in the passing game because Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp have received most of the targets. However, Higbee still has 20 receptions for 234 yards and is playing 93 percent of the snaps on offense.

Falling

Brock Purdy, 49ers: The second-year quarterback finally had the first poor performance of his young career, finishing 12-of-27 for 125 passing yards, with a touchdown and an interception in his team's loss to the Cleveland Browns. Purdy was sacked three times, posting a 55.5 passer rating.

Purdy had to finish the game without injured playmakers in Deebo Samuel (shoulder) and Christian McCaffrey (oblique/rib), along a hobbled left tackle in Trent Williams (ankle). The 49ers were playing against a top-flight defense in the Browns and facing a defensive coordinator in Jim Schwartz who seems to have Kyle Shanahan's number.

Samuel and McCaffrey might not be available for Monday's game on the road against the Vikings, so Purdy may have to do more of the heavy lifting for San Francisco's offense in Week 7.

49ers lose to Browns in Week 6: Brock Purdy 125 Yds, TD, INT

Jake Moody, 49ers: While Purdy did not play well, he did help engineer San Francisco's offense into field goal position, where the team's rookie kicker could have made a 41-yarder for the win.

Moody, however, pushed the kick wide right. The Michigan product also missed from 54 yards out. Moody had been a perfect 9-for-9 entering Sunday's game.

San Francisco's championship-caliber roster relying on the inexperienced, third-round selection from this year's draft to execute in high-leverage situations had been a concern at the start of the year, considering the 49ers moved on from veteran Robbie Gould due to his price tag. Gould has not missed a postseason kick.

However, the Bengals relied on a rookie kicker in Evan McPherson in making their Super Bowl run during the 2021 season, and he did not miss a field goal in the playoffs. Perhaps Moody can get back on track next week.

Jonathan Gannon, Cardinals: Arizona has led at halftime in four of their first six games under their new head coach but has been outscored 98-30 in the second half of games this season, and 64-7 in the fourth quarter. Hence, Arizona's 1-5 record.

However, Gannon has done a nice job of creating a culture of discipline and accountability. And the Cardinals got some good news this week, with quarterback Kyler Murray starting his 21-day clock on returning from the Physically Unable to Perform list by returning to practice on Wednesday.

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Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.