The Seattle Seahawks pulled off one of the biggest trades of the NFL offseason, but it took months of negotiations to land Jamal Adams. Seahawks general manager John Schneider discussed the behind-the-scenes details of the trade during an interview on The Peter King Podcast.
Schneider noted his relationship with Jets general manager Joe Douglas goes back to being with him on a scouting visit at Boise State on the same day that Kam Chancellor ended his holdout in 2015 and the two discussed how the Seahawks handled the situation. Now, the roles were reversed as Douglas had a Pro Bowl safety who wanted out of town. Schneider revealed that their first conversations on Adams happened before the NFL draft, but things began to intensify about two months prior to the deal.
“Going through what he was going through, we had talked obviously before the draft,” Schneider explained. “We traded with them on draft weekend and had a couple of different things lined up with them and then got into the situation with Jamal [Adams]. Our staff…our guys do a really good job of what we preach about just trying to stay in every deal and try to be connected and see what the landscape looks like throughout the National Football League. I think it was just a matter of staying in touch with those guys and keeping their relationships going. Being open, candid with our conversations and I’d have to say probably about two months ago, maybe a month and a half ago, is when Joe and I started really getting serious about it.”
Schneider on Giving Up 2 First-Round Picks: ‘We Just Felt Like We Should Go For It’
The big question for Schneider is why the Seahawks were willing to give up two first-round picks and an additional third rounder along with Bradley McDougald for Adams. Schneider cited the Seahawks historically picking at the end of the first round as well as the team’s desire to “go for it” now as reasons to be aggressive.
“And we just viewed it as an opportunity to say, ‘if we’re picking No. 27 and move up to [No. 6], what does that look like on to us on draft weekend?'” Schneider explained, per Seahawks.com. “And quite honestly, we felt like it was appropriate for us, that that would be the right compensation. Now that can be debated, right? It’s fun, it’s entertainment for everybody, I get it. But when you’re in that arena with somebody and you’re having those negotiations and you’re trying to figure out what your future is going to look like and what your windows of opportunity look like, we just felt like we should go for it. You can’t sit here and preach that you’re going to be a consistent championship-caliber football team and not be in something like this and go for it.”
The Jets Described the Seahawks as the Most Aggressive Team Pursuing Adams
The Seahawks were not the only team pursuing Adams, but Douglas described Seattle as the “most aggressive in their pursuit.” Publicly, the Jets maintained that they did not plan to trade Adams, but the Seahawks’ offer became too good to pass up.
“Joe Douglas said he had several suitors for Jamal Adams, but the Seahawks were the most ‘aggressive in their pursuit,'” SNY.TV’s Ralph Vacchiano tweeted.
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Seahawks Reveal Behind-the-Scenes Details on Jamal Adams Trade