Cowboys strike out on potential trade to bring Jets Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams home
The Dallas Cowboys failed. But they tried.
In an attempt to finally upgrade the safety position for a possible long playoff run in 2019 and bolster the back end of the defense with a young talent for years to come, the Cowboys engaged in trade talks with the New York Jets about Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams all the way up the NFL’s trade deadline of 3 p.m.
Ultimately, the Cowboys didn’t swing hard enough and struck out.
The Jets’ demand of at a first-round pick and two second-round picks for Adams, 24, was simply too high for the Cowboys, per sources.
That the Cowboys seemingly did the unthinkable, offering a first-round pick for Adams one year after giving up a first to the Oakland Raiders for wide receiver Amari Cooper, showed how bad they wanted to do the deal.
Vice president Stephen Jones and owner Jerry Jones have long stated how tough it was them to part with a first round pick. But both had expressed interest in upgrading the safety position.
That they would have been without one for two years if the trade for Adams went through spoke volumes about their interest in trying to put the best team on the field to hopefully reach the Super Bowl for the first time since their last title in 1995.
Adams, who played in high school at Lewisville Hebron before starring in college at LSU and being picked sixth overall by the Jets in the 2017 NFL Draft, wanted to come home and play for the Cowboys.
But the Jets weren’t going to let him go lightly.
Per a source, the Jets wanted just under what Los Angeles Rams recently gave up to the Jacksonville Jaguars for cornerback Jalen Ramsey, two first-round draft selections as well as the Rams’ 2021 fourth-round choice.
The Cowboys would have given up a first and swapped late-round picks but they were not giving up bounty of picks the Jets wanted.
So the status quo at safety remains with the maligned Jeff Heath at strong safety opposite Xavier Woods at free safety.
It is a trade that could be revisited in the off season, per a source.
Adams would have a huge upgrade over Heath and given the Cowboys a proven play maker on the back end.
The Cowboys (4-3) will have to settle for the deal they did make to spark a second-half run when they return from last week’s bye.
Defensive end Michael Bennett, who the Cowboys acquired from the New England Patriots last Thursday for a conditional 2021 seventh-round pick, practiced Tuesday and should make his debut against the New York Giants Monday night.
This story was originally published October 29, 2019 at 5:21 PM.
