Rich Cimini, ESPN Staff Writer 5y

Jets' Jamal Adams has old-school work ethic with 'new-school swag'

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Before Jamal Adams feeds his appetite, he nourishes his brain.

When the New York Jets have a home game, he will leave the team hotel and stop by his apartment for a home-cooked breakfast on the way to the stadium, courtesy of his mother, Michele. It's a big part of his game-day routine. As she prepares the meal, Adams will sit nearby with his eyes focused on his tablet, studying video of the day's opponent. As the stove heats up, so does Adams. He's always looking for a tell, a hidden clue that might help him get to a receiver or running back a nanosecond faster than usual.

Before stepping into the shower, he'll watch more video. When he arrives at the stadium, he'll have his tablet with him at his locker, looking at cut-ups until it's time to run through the tunnel for pregame introductions. By kickoff, he will have watched roughly 20 hours of game video on his own, not including the prep work that happens inside the team's facility. That tablet is practically part of his wardrobe, according to teammates and coaches.

"He has an old-school mind and an old-school mentality, with a new-school swag, so to speak," coach Todd Bowles told ESPN. "He works his tail off, and he studies."

The entire NFL is seeing the results. Adams, 23, in only his second season, is the Jets' best young player since Darrelle Revis built his "Island" empire, circa 2008. Adams is an every-down menace, a sideline-to-sideline blur who gets to places on the field faster than those who know how the offensive play is designed. With unusual speed and internal GPS, the hard-hitting strong safety is the best player on the team and certainly Pro Bowl-worthy.

After missing the Pro Bowl as a rookie, Adams vowed on Twitter that he'd never again be left off the team. He is loud and confident, a true alpha male. That can rub some people the wrong way, but it's part of what makes him so good. He leads the Jets in solo tackles (67) and forced fumbles (three). He leads all NFL safeties in passes defensed (12), and he's tied in tackles for loss (eight).

"Right now, he's playing like one of the best safeties in the NFL," cornerback Trumaine Johnson said. "He definitely should be a Pro Bowler and an All-Pro safety in my book. He has that 'it' factor. He's special."

The son of former NFL running back George Adams, who played most of his career with the New York Giants, Adams learned football by being around football. By the age of 8, he was so aggressive that some pee-wee league opponents surrendered, cutting short games because they feared for the safety of their players. He was -- and is -- a relentless tackler with textbook form. As a kid, he attended Michael Irvin's football camp in the Dallas area and made such a loud tackle that Irvin looked at the proud pop and said, "George, you got you one."

Bowles, himself a former safety, believes Adams' upbringing is a big reason for his success.

"Certain guys are brought up the right way," he said. "They're not given any wooden nickels. As talented as he is, his work ethic is even better than his talent. And that's what makes him great. And he wants to be great all the time.

"He can play a pickup game, he can be in a meeting, he can flip a coin ... and he's going to be extremely competitive. If you win, he'll clap, and he'll come back and want to do it again until he beats you. His spirit is never-say-die. His attitude is something you just can't teach."

Understand this about Bowles: He isn't prone to hyperbole. Unlike his predecessor, the blustery Rex Ryan, Bowles doesn't toss around too many superlatives. When he says a player is "great," it's worth a headline. Acknowledging that he isn't one to give effusive praise, Bowles said, "I usually don't [gush], but he could play in any era."

Describing Adams' natural instincts as a run-defender, Bowles said, "Even if his reads get skewed and he can't read all his keys, he still [gets] in the right spot every time. That never ceased to amaze me. Teams always run certain plays where you know it's going to be a problem for the safety, but I haven't seen one play be a problem for him. That's impressive."

A lot of coaches sit in darkened offices and marvel when they see greatness on video. Bowles doesn't have to wait that long.

"The thing about him, you can see it on Sunday afternoon," he said. "You don't need to watch the film to see it. You know it when he's on the field because he makes his presence felt. He understands the game very well. You're like, 'Wow, this guy is unbelievable.'"

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick said Adams is "like a linebacker. He's around the line of scrimmage a lot. He blitzes, he's aggressive, he's got tackles for loss, sacks, pressures. He's down around the line a lot, or sometimes he's kind of roaming free in the middle, but he's a contact player."

Adams has lined up in the box on 42 percent of his snaps, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The number seems like it should be higher, perhaps because most of his impact plays occur near the line. He isn't known for his pass coverage, but he has improved in that area, even though he has only one interception.

Secondary coach Dennard Wilson said Adams has done a good job of maintaining leverage, understanding break points and finishing at the top of routes. Against the Patriots, he delivered two blow-up hits, separating ball from man on passes to Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman. Adams, who experienced a couple of hiccups last season against Gronk, neutralized him on two straight vertical routes into the end zone.

Adams, known for calling out plays before the snap, said he knew exactly what Gronk was going to do. How? Film study.

"I'm always watching film because I want to get that jump," he said. "I want that edge on my opponent. ... I'm like a football junkie. I like watching football, played the right way."

Adams' next-door neighbor in the locker room is nose tackle Steve McLendon, who had the privilege of playing with one of the best safeties of the current era: retired Pittsburgh Steelers star Troy Polamalu, a future Hall of Famer. Obvious question: How do they compare?

Out of respect for both players, McLendon declined to make a direct comparison, though it became pretty apparent how much he thinks of his teammate. Before catching himself, he said Adams has "the potential to be a Hall of Famer one day."

"Troy was something special," McLendon said. "I saw Troy fly, and I didn't even know that could be done. Jamal is special, too, but I was a young pup around Troy. I can only imagine what Troy was doing before I got there. I'm only seeing the beginning of Jamal, so I can't compare, but I can say this: Jamal plays with the passion that Troy played with. He plays with that same drive."

Adams is ultra-intense and demands perfection out of himself and others. The losing drives him mad. After each defeat, he battles to keep his emotions in check. When talking to reporters, his breathing becomes pronounced and his sentences get short. After last week's meltdown at the Tennessee Titans, he was ranting and raving as he walked into the locker room. Later, staring into a bank of cameras, he said his message to teammates was, "Are you part of the problem, or are you part of the solution?"

It's unusual for a 23-year-old to carry himself as a team leader. There have been missteps along the way. Publicly, Adams has lamented the team's losing culture, unwittingly creating more negative attention for his beleaguered coach.

"He wears his emotions on his sleeve, and I knew that when I made him a captain," Bowles said. "I knew he was going to go through a growth period in that aspect. You just don't come in as a young guy, into New York City, and say everything right. Being as outspoken as he is, he learns as he goes. Between the spring and now, he has made great jumps, him being a leader."

As a player, Adams has already arrived. To paraphrase Michael Irvin, the Jets got themselves one.

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