Who was/is better Jamal Adams or Earl Thomas?

[ApnaHawk]

As a die hard ET fan since the day he was drafted, I’ll say JA has the chance to have a far more impactful career. Earl was a post safety. Adams is in the mold of Troy P. A once in a generation type of a talent.

Obviously health and longevity will come into play but he has the chance to not just be the best safety but also one of if not top Seahawks of all time. His leadership and his maturity off the field will get him a yellow jacket, as long as his health permits.

 

[Bosnianseahawk1991]

Imo this is very close. Et was a bullet and just as fast as Adams. (IMO). He obviously played with a better supporting cast. He was a better ballhawk, and had better hands to make a interception. Adams to me is the better overall talent, and better player. (It is very close though). The reason I think he is better is his overall feel for the game and leadership skills. Jamal missed 4 games and set the sack record for a DB. He would be on pace for a 16 sack season. Imagine a DE being a free agent and having a year like that. He would command 23-25 mil a year salary. Jamal is a once in a generational talent. He also is only 25 YEARS old. He is just entering his prime . You don’t trade two 1st round picks without expecting a HOF talent back. The main reason I would choose Adams over Thomas would be Leadership/professionalism factors. Earl was surrounded by elite/alpha players that will hold you accountable for every mistake .

 

[jammerhawk]

I loved early Earl, but he became a ‘me’ player. I suspect he was great here b/c of the talent around him but he was not a team guy or a genuine leader and was kept in check by the other real team players. I thought his talent was eroding by the time he left and unlike Chancellor failed to grow in a team way or with cerebral football skills. Adams is both a team guy and a genuine leader from the small but completely excellent sample we’ve had the pleasure of seeing so far. His ceiling appears to be be out of sight and special. His football diagnosing skill appears unusually advanced for a young player.

They are however different players Earl was great in coverage and Adams is a Polamalu style hitter. Earl had better hands but Adams tackles better. Adams already reminds me in that regard of Easley who I still regard as one of the greatest ever. Adams is an eraser and a guy who is still growing as a player.

It’s early still but after seeing his impact after his partial first season playing with injuries that limit his hands and hurt his speed the Hawks paid well but got a valuable core player who’s top end could be once in a lifetime great.

To me Adams is better than Thomas and his attitude is light years ahead. Time will tell but already the team appears to have gotten value from the trade.

 

[RiverDog]

I come down more in the apples vs. oranges crowd. They are two completely different players. Earl's contribution was making the corners more effective, hardly ever played within 10 yards of the LOS, and could cover the field sideline to sideline. He had a sixth sense when it came to figuring out where the play was going. Richard Sherman would have been just another cornerback had it not been for Earl.

Adams plays more like Kenny Easley or Kam Chancellor, more of a LB/DB hybrid than he is a safety.

 

[Mad Dog]

Well, ET cost a high first-round pick.

JA cost McDougald, first-round picks in 2021 and 2022 and a third-round pick in 2021. So the FO paid a lot more for JA.

Actually the price is pretty similar. The cost of moving up that high in the draft from a low 1st round pick would likely be another first round pick. So it's more a 3rd and MacDougald which were lesser losses.

 

[RiverDog]

Well, ET cost a high first-round pick.

JA cost McDougald, first-round picks in 2021 and 2022 and a third-round pick in 2021. So the FO paid a lot more for JA.

Actually the price is pretty similar. The cost of moving up that high in the draft from a low 1st round pick would likely be another first round pick. So it's more a 3rd and MacDougald which were lesser losses.

The other thing that has to be factored in is that the 2021 draft is going to be even more of a crap shoot than it normally is due to college football's struggle with the pandemic. The Big 10 and Pac 12 had abbreviated seasons, many of the mid majors and FCS conferences canceled their season entirely, and some players will be taking advantage of an extra season of eligibility. That's going to affect the NFL draft significantly, making player evaluation more difficult, especially in the lower third of the first round where our pick will end up landing.

 

[TypeSly]

Earl was truly the captain of the defense. I haven't seen Adams own the defense like Earl did. Earl also had an innate sense of who needs help over top and was a ball-hawk. Earl never played on the line either.

It's good that Adams has lived up to some high standards.

That's because Earl was a Free Safety, and Adams is a Strong / Weak-side Safety, and closer to a Linebacker than a FS. They are both rovers, but on complete different parts of the field. I'd say Adams is a combination of Earl and Kam, so it's really hard to compare.

 

[Bigpumpkin]

If there was a foot race between the two...who would win? Who is the fastest?

 

[TypeSly]

If there was a foot race between the two...who would win? Who is the fastest?

Earl has the faster 40-yard dash time, but that doesn't always tell you accurately who's faster. I wish that they would record players' times at the 10-yard point on those runs as well. Because some players are very fast from a stationary position and some take a little longer to get up to speed. Strong safety's especially need to be fast in the initial 10-yard burst, because the 40-yard dash is generally 30 yards of maintaining your speed.

Example: People wonder how DK Metcalf was able to chase down Budda Baker on that (almost pick-6) play, when their 40yd times were so close. Well, 40 yard times require athlets to carry their speed for 30 yards, which can be difficult for some. Well, they didn't take into account that DK (is a freak of nature and a track-star) chased him down over 80 yards, so by that distance, DK would have chased down anyone in the history of the NFL, when they recorded his speed of 23.xx mph after 60 or 70 yards :mrgreen:

 

[andyh64000]

Well, ET cost a high first-round pick.

JA cost McDougald, first-round picks in 2021 and 2022 and a third-round pick in 2021. So the FO paid a lot more for JA.

Actually the price is pretty similar. The cost of moving up that high in the draft from a low 1st round pick would likely be another first round pick. So it's more a 3rd and MacDougald which were lesser losses.

I was thinking the same thing but Earl was the 14th pick which I don't think is equivalent to two firsts of any kind. Don't get me wrong, I think Adams was totally worth it.

 

[SonicHawk]

Earl was truly the captain of the defense. I haven't seen Adams own the defense like Earl did. Earl also had an innate sense of who needs help over top and was a ball-hawk. Earl never played on the line either.

It's good that Adams has lived up to some high standards.

That's because Earl was a Free Safety, and Adams is a Strong / Weak-side Safety, and closer to a Linebacker than a FS. They are both rovers, but on complete different parts of the field. I'd say Adams is a combination of Earl and Kam, so it's really hard to compare.

A combination of Earl and Kam is what gets me off at night.

 

[falcongoggles]

To say ET had better hands is too early to tell. We've seen JA drop one INT.

ET had hands of STONE. If he could've caught even half the balls thrown right into the numbers he would've had double the INTs.

 

[TypeSly]

Earl was truly the captain of the defense. I haven't seen Adams own the defense like Earl did. Earl also had an innate sense of who needs help over top and was a ball-hawk. Earl never played on the line either.

It's good that Adams has lived up to some high standards.

That's because Earl was a Free Safety, and Adams is a Strong / Weak-side Safety, and closer to a Linebacker than a FS. They are both rovers, but on complete different parts of the field. I'd say Adams is a combination of Earl and Kam, so it's really hard to compare.

A combination of Earl and Kam is what gets me off at night.

LOL that's a good thing! It's really ironic that he costed us the exact amount that Earl and Kam costed us.

Earl (1st Rd pick) Kam (3rd Rd pick).
Jamal (1st Rd pick)

We traded (2) 1st Rd picks and a 3rd Rd pick for him. Minus one of those 1st rounders for getting Jamal, and you have exactly that amount left over :mrgreen:

 

[ivotuk]

Jamal Adams, by far.

He makes way more splash plays, goes HARD on EVERY play, and is Team First. :2thumbs:

 

[RolandDeschain]

They are so different in a lot of ways, it makes them hard to compare. We didn't try to do with Earl what we are currently doing with Jamal, so we don't know if he could have been similarly effective at these other tasks as well; but thus far, I'm leaning towards giving the edge to Jamal, and that is high praise.

 

[KiwiHawk]

ET burned his bridges to get out of here. Adam's is ecstatic to be here and heading to the playoffs.

No contest.

 

[Appyhawk]

Seahawks have been blessed with a lot of great players. When a player proves he is great without being surrounded by a bunch of other great players I tend to give them extra points in the best ever category. IMO Adams and Earl are/were both surrounded by a lot of other great players.
Kenny Easley and Eugene Robinson might be a couple deserving of best ever secondary status. Those two brought it bigtime every week.