Jamal Adams Was 'Never Promised' Jets Contract Extension, Per GM Joe Douglas

New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas said Monday he "never promised" star safety Jamal Adams that a new contract was in the offing.

The New York Daily News' Manish Mehta provided some of the details that eventually led the Jets to trade Adams to the Seattle Seahawks.

"In January, Douglas told Adams' camp that he would go to ownership/management to initiate the process to craft a first proposal for a contract extension," Mehta wrote. "It seemed promising."

Douglas offered his side during a conference call with reporters:

Adams has two years remaining on his current contract after the Jets triggered his $9.9 million option for 2021.

While Douglas was emphatic in saying the team didn't lead the 2019 All-Pro on, he told reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine that "the plan is for Jamal to be a Jet for life."

"We've had some preliminary talks with his agent," he said. "I'm not going to get into the specifics of that. But the plan is for Jamal to be here a long time."

Adams referenced those comments when speaking with Mehta.

"Why would Joe come out and say, 'We want to make Jamal a Jet for life?'" he said. "Why would you say that and then not even give me an offer? ... Don't B.S. me. I'm a straightforward guy. You don't have to B.S. me, because I'm going to keep it honest."

According to Mehta, Douglas didn't make a contract offer to Adams' representatives and instead said the Jets would wait until the 2021 offseason to resume negotiations.

The Jets landed 2021 and 2022 first-round picks, a 2021 third-rounder and veteran safety Bradley McDougald as the return from trading Adams, who went to Seattle along with a 2022 fourth-rounder.

ESPN's Bill Barnwell gave New York a B-plus grade for the move and gave Seattle a C-plus, questioning whether a safety—even one as good as Adams—is worth what the Seahawks gave up.

Douglas, meanwhile, emphasized how the trade sets the team up for the future:

It's still ultimately up to the Jets to make the most of those picks.

Ahead of the 2012 draft, the St. Louis Rams appeared to be on the receiving end of a thoroughly one-sided deal from the Washington NFL team, which wanted to move up to select Robert Griffin III. It didn't turn out to be a transformative trade for either team.

New York isn't guaranteed to land a player who's better than the one it had in Adams.

And Douglas' comments Monday might do little to alleviate the perception the Jets alienated one of their top stars to the point he engineered an exit out of town.