If Joe Douglas and the New York Jets decide it’s best to trade Jamal Adams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wideout Chris Godwin is the dream return.
So much is unknown at the moment. Simply raising the topic isn’t even necessary thanks to its rabid nature. Yet, very interestingly, not much is known.
For instance, did the New York Jets really promise Jamal Adams a first contract offer in January and ultimately renege? How constant has communication been over the last several months? Did the Jets fully back out on an extension this offseason due to COVID-19 and does Jamal truly want to be a Jet?
Until answers are provided to these questions, nobody knows much. What we do know is Adams is a horrible talent evaluator. The Prez has wanted “dogs” for a couple of seasons now, and through some of his own recruiting, thought he acquired a few. Unfortunately, the kind of dogs he needed play offensive line, not running back and inside linebacker.
For Jets fans to witness Adams struggle over three seasons with improper team-building philosophies fielding a subpar product only to want out before Joe Douglas’s vision hits the field is one of the more frustrating aspects of the entire situation. But if Adams wants out and the Jets oblige, there’s one man atop the list whose presence suffices as a dream return. In fact, it would be an upgrade based on the nickname/name game.
The Jets would trade a President for a God.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin represents the dream return for Jamal Adams’s services for a myriad of reasons.
Proposed Deal
- Jets receive: Chris Godwin, 2021 third-round pick
- Bucs receive: Jamal Adams, Breshad Perriman
It would even work in a straight-up deal, Adams for Godwin.
The Bucs did just allow Breshad Perriman to walk. But it’s not as if they don’t like the kid. Perriman with Godwin and Mike Evans is a trio that just didn’t fit perfectly (as evidenced by Perriman’s late-season surge after the other two fell with injury). All three players like playing the outside. They all fit the prototype on the sideline. While Godwin played the majority of Bruce Arians’s slot snaps a year ago (team-leading 378, 63.4% of Godwin’s receiving snaps), many would argue it’s not his natural fit.
Arians loves to throw a bigger body in the slot. Think Reggie Wayne and Larry Fitzgerald in years past. He doesn’t mind having a bigger guy who can run block to mix it up on the inside, and obviously, it benefited Godwin to the tune of a Pro Bowl, 1,333 yards and nine touchdowns on 86 total grabs a year ago—a full breakout season.
It’s doubtful the Bucs would relent Godwin in any deal, even for Adams. Tom Brady has done more for the slot position in the NFL than any quarterback in NFL history which puts Godwin on track to pile up 5,000 yards or so in 2020 (sarcastic voice).
The Incoming Minnesota Rookies May Change Things
Two incoming Bucs rookies could be roadblocks in a potential Godwin-for-Adams swap.
Fifth-round selection Tyler Johnson (Minnesota) – who ranked third in the FBS with 3.64 yards per route run in 2019 – is projected as a heady slot man in the NFL. Many pundits are already slotting him in between Godwin and Evans this season despite Godwin’s slot duties a year ago.
If the Bucs feel good about Johnson in the slot, slotting him alongside Evans, Perriman and Justin Watson would still be one of the top groups in the league.
The other rookie that could influence a possible deal is safety Antoine Winfield Jr. The son of the hard-hitting Antoine Winfield Sr., Jr. is a strong safety who enjoys contact. As a second-round selection, his immediate starting status is unknown. As of now, it’s Mike Edwards and Justin Evans holding down the fort—hardly impressive. Our own Michael Nania ranked Tampa Bay’s safety group 26th in the NFL, so the Bucs do have a dire need at the position.
If Tampa Bay feels as though it’s not losing much at receiver, perhaps adding Adams to this defense could be the remaining piece to a legitimate Super Bowl run. Would two similar box safeties in Winfield and Adams together make sense in any way? Are the Bucs already viewing Winfield as a starter?
Todd Bowles and Jason Licht
Jamal Adams’s record in his first two seasons in New York was 9-23. This happened under Todd Bowles, yet the LSU product loves the former Washington Redskins safety by all accounts.
Playing for Bowles in Tampa with Brady on the other side makes all the sense in the world and must tickle Adams’s fancy (we already know the Bucs are on his extremely impressive list that includes eight NFL winners, the 1985 Chicago Bears, the 1927 New York Yankees and the 1996 Chicago Bulls, etc.).
Oh yeah, and as elite as Adams is on the field, pulling off a deal after the draft is one of the harder things to do in the NFL. The Champ Bailey for Clinton Portis blockbusters rarely happen.
For the Jets to even dream about pulling off a monster trade like this, the other general manager must have a daredevil’s edge to him. Bucs GM Jason Licht qualifies. Remember, he just swept aside young Jameis Winston for a quarterback who turns 43 on Aug. 3. It would take a daredevil to trade away Godwin and pull the trigger on a seemingly always unhappy Adams.
Final Thoughts
Admittedly, this one feels far-fetched (although most trade ideas do feel that way until reality smacks everybody in the face). Depending on the organization, a receiver like Godwin could be completely untouchable. But hey, we’re talking about the best safety in the league on a team that needs an impact defensive player—especially at that very position.
Adams for draft picks would work brilliantly prior to the NFL draft. Waiting an entire year for those assets is a tough thing, and it’s even tougher to receive more in return due to the fact a whole season needs to pass before those selections can be utilized.
Players are needed. Young players who fill the holes. A wide receiver for Sam Darnold? That’s a yes. And yes, Godwin would need to be signed to a long-term deal. The third-round pick is slated to become a free agent after the 2020 season (Evans is signed through 2023 and is two and a half years older than his colleague).
Edge rusher, cornerback, and even offensive line would work as a return too. But it’s a weapon for Sam that could really turn the dream into a reality.
Adams is still the better player. A first-team All-Pro and second-team All-Pro to Godwin’s lone Pro Bowl is all the evidence needed. But the fact that wide receiver is more of a premium position in the eyes of the general public is what evens things up.
It’s entirely too early to be discussing trade with Jamal Adams, especially considering we haven’t yet heard from the Jets. But hey, if we’re talking about potential returns, Chris Godwin is that dream scenario.
Who wouldn’t want to move on from a President in order to roll the red carpet out for a God?
