https://www.vikings.com/news/jamal-adams-rebuild-vikings-foundation-2026

Jamal Adams Continuing His 'Rebuild' by Adding to Vikings Foundation

EAGAN, Minn. — Jamal Adams calls his journey the rebuild.

"You gotta kinda start all over," the 30-year-old explained to Vikings Entertainment Network's Tatum Everett after training camp practice Thursday. "Just rebuilding from [the] ground up, mentally and physically, and obviously it took some time. It took about 3 years."

Adams inked a nothing-to-lose-everything-to-gain contract this week and has sprinkled in reps, already, with the first-team defense. He didn't need many words to explain why he signed.

"Nolan and B-Flo'," Adams said, point blank, in a media scrum after Wednesday's session.

A nod, obviously, to General Manager Nolan Teasley and Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores. The former was Seattle's Director of Pro Personnel (from 2018-22 before Assistant General Manager) and helped bring Adams to the Seahawks from the Jets in 2020 in exchange for multiple firsts and a third-round pick. The latter, viewed as a defensive whiz, formed a relationship with the three-time All-Pro when they met twice a year as adversaries in the AFC East (first, when Flo' was a Patriots assistant and then Miami's head coach). A merger on the Vikings just made sense for GM, DC and hybrid who played linebacker for the Raiders in 2025 after beginning his career as a safety.

"Always had a lot of respect and a lot of admiration for Jamal and his game, going all the way back to college," Flores said. "Obviously, a high draft pick, has had a lot of very, very productive years. As far as accolades and awards, he's picked those up as well. But just spending time with him — this is a football guy — he kind of lives and breathes the game."

Flores said he sensed within 24 hours, "A joy and a love for the game that's infectious."

Adams feels the same way about the coach whose creative structures cater to his strengths.

"Always had a respect from afar, always kept up with him," he said. "There's certain DCs in the league that you pray that you could play for one day. He fits me – and we fit each other."

The 6th overall pick out of LSU in 2017 was nothing short of brilliant his first handful of pro seasons. Adams was a mismatch for offenses and protection schemes, and an elite blitzer.

Vikings LB Blake Cashman knows as well as anyone what Adams can add to the equation.

"We kind of had a good laugh when I first saw him because, you know, when I was in New York, I was a rookie, so he's, like — obviously, he was a safety, but he was still, like, one of the better players on our team, on our defense — a guy that was teaching the young guys and being a leader," Cashman said. "And I'm a rookie, you know, rookie year. Like guys are stressed out, anxious. I mean, you're just trying to figure everything out. And so now him being here, and guys like me and E-Wil (Eric Wilson) that know the defense well, we're trying to get him along because I think it's obvious what kind of value he could bring to our defense."

From 2017-21, Adams ranked seventh among DBs in total tackles (443), right behind "The Hitman" Harrison Smith (450), and he led them in tackles for loss (43) — five more than anyone — as well as quarterback hits (39) — 19 more than Smith, who tied Malcolm Jenkins and Logan Ryan in third — and sacks. Adams' tally of 21.5 in that span paced all DBs from 2006-21.

Then, Adams experienced a brutal setback, suffering a torn left quadriceps tendon in the Seahawks 2022 season opener against Denver while rushing Broncos QB and former Seattle teammate Russell Wilson.

Adams returned nearly 13 months later in a Week 4 contest at the Giants. His confidence wasn't back, though. It was shaken. He pressed hard to be available for his teammates but was overwhelmed by self-doubt. As a result, his performance sagged like his opportunities.

"I really lost my confidence when I first tore it," Adams told Twin Cities media this week. "Getting back the following year, in '23, I wasn't confident. I knew my knee wasn't fully back yet, but I knew I was on contract. I knew I had to get out there — go out there and sacrifice."

Adams tried. He landed on Injured Reserve near the end of his comeback season. It was the toll of his torn quadriceps, an injury that generally debilitates a person worse than an ACL repair. The recovery process, Adams said, "takes time; it takes years to really get it back to yourself. You might heal, but you're not back to yourself mentally and physically."

He confessed: "You try to beat the system in a way or beat the timeline — I had no chance."

A little birdie (it's no secret, former Vikings CB Stephon Gilmore was a peer in his ear) helped Adams see the upside of his newest opportunity. "Gilly was one of those guys that, he definitely helped me with this choice," Adams said. "Everybody was saying, 'Man, you link up with Flo', man, the sky could be the limit for you. He can use you in unique ways.'"

Flores cited Joshua Metellus as an imaginative example of optimizing a player with Adams' skills. Listed as a linebacker, Adams has worked in the box through two training camp practices. He must retrain his dialect as much if not more than his body playing for Flores.

"He's got some general football knowledge and understanding of concepts," Flores said. "In a lot of ways, it's just going to be terminology. We had this conversation [Wednesday] morning: 'We call this this, you guys call it this,' and it's just kind of like speaking a new language."

The coach added: "I tell guys all the time, your role on this group, with this group, on this unit is whatever you make it; the more you can do and be productive with [the greater odds you have of succeeding]. I think Metellus is a great example of that." Adams could be next.

Seven years removed from their initial teaming up, Cashman is a different player — a difference-maker, plain and simple; more like the showrunner he witnessed in Adams.

"The biggest thing I took away from him, which at the time I wasn't comfortable doing was his playmaking ability," Cashman shared. "He'd get lined up (on the Jets), and the call might tell you to do one thing, but he knows what play or route is coming, and so he may kind of void his zone a little bit — but he's going to go make the play. And as a rookie, I remember in games, he was lined up behind me, I'm the Will linebacker, and he's calling stuff out. But I wasn't comfortable, like, putting myself in a position to make a play if it meant, you know, maybe not doing what I'm supposed to be doing on paper. But that's the thing. When you're a guy like Jamal, who's made a lot of big plays in this league, seen a lot of ball, you have the experience; you've earned the right to kind of play a little bit more freely."

Even as quickly as Thursday, Cashman added, Adams played with the instincts he recalled.

In a third-down period, Cashman said Adams identified route concepts based on the formation: "Kyler [Murray] gave us quick game, and he was breaking on the inside route before Kyler could get to his third read, and Kyler had to just dirt it. So, it's plays like that where he sees them develop before they actually do, which is a special trait for a player."

As Adams acclimates to what Cashman admitted is "probably the worst defense to walk into" during training camp with no prior practice experience because of the sheer quantity of information, he expects him to lead by example and with his messaging to teammates.

"Definitely brings a lot of energy and has a big personality, and I think as he continues to get more comfortable in this defense, you're going to start to see it," Cashman said. "I mean, I saw a big difference even from today compared to yesterday (Wednesday). He was out there, had a better feel for what we were running, and he was helping other guys. … So as training camp goes on, I think you're going to start to hear Jamal Adams' voice much more."

Cashman added: "He's been very vocal in the sense of obviously not being afraid to ask questions, receive clarity, because he's been a great player in this league, and like I said, he has a lot of experience — but he's humble enough to understand, 'Hey, I'm new to this room.' … It's a lot thrown at you. He's a competitor, though. He wants to get it right, and he's intentional about his work. So he's going to ask those questions to get the clarity because he wants to be able to get to that free state of play where he's comfortable and confident."

Adams lit up when he was asked about reuniting with Cash': "Now I'm learning from him!"

"It's crazy, man, because he was my rookie," Adams said, smiling back to 2019. "[He's] not only a great dude — he's a hell of a football player. We knew he was going to be good; it was just going to run its course. Everybody starts either fast in their career, early, or slow in their career, early, and pick it up later. He was one of those guys, and he's doing a hell of a job."

Once the highest-paid safety in football, Adams accepted contracts a fraction of his past with Tennessee and Detroit in 2024 and Las Vegas in 2025. He bounced between rosters, the practice squad and IR two years ago. Last season awakened his rebuild. Starting four of 17 games for the Silver and Black, Adams became a relied-upon guy, again. He played at least 20 defensive snaps in 12 contests, and he notched his first sack in four years, nine months and 29 days (1,764 days overall). Adams credited people in his corner – and internal drive.