NFL.com
Grade: A
Jamal Adams is an excellent, hard-nosed stud who presents great leadership qualities. He was the best player available, and they made the right call.
Fox SportsGrade: A-
He's a good safety that really fits best in Cover-2 looks. The Jets ran a Cover 2 defense a lot last year. Nothing wrong with this pick.
Sports Illustrated
Grade: A
The start of the draft worked out like a dream for the Jets — a QB and a RB went in the top five, meaning they had their choice of Adams and O.J. Howard, among others. Adams is the right pick. Only the NFL's aversion to taking safeties in the top five kept Adams from being a lock in a spot higher than this. He has all the makings of a defensive centerpiece at the next level. Jets coach Todd Bowles will max out the ways in which Adams can be useful.
Bleacher Report
Grade: A
Jamal Adams is the best safety in the best safety class in years—a prospect who is Ed Reed-like enough to make comparisons to Reed not sound like gross exaggerations.
The nitpicking knocks in Adams' game are his tendency to play the receiver instead of the ball, proclivity to sacrifice an interception for a big hit, and a habit of taking some overaggressive bad angles that remove him from open-field plays. Those are easy-to-correct flaws, making Adams one of the safest picks and most immediate upgrades in this draft class.
USA TodayGrade: A
He's a thumper in the run game, he can cover tight ends and he can even play the centerfield role in the deep middle. Oh, and Allen was one of the best leaders in college football.
Yahoo Sports
Grade: A-
The Jets had a darned good player fall into their laps, faintly similar to how they took Leonard Williams in the same slot a few years back. That worked out well. Both players were regarded as extremely hard workers and tone setters. Adams will help change the culture that has infected the Jets' locker room the past few years, and he's a very good box safety to boot. The fans there will love his hitting and his passion. The Jets will rebuild the D around Williams and Adams.
SB Nation
Grade: A-
With Adams, the Jets get the safest player in the entire draft. It was a surprise to see Adams go outside the top five. So forget the Jets needing a quarterback or pass rusher. This is a smart choice. Adams can come up and stop the run, he's comfortable in both man and zone coverage and, as a bonus, he can even get after the quarterback. The Jets need sure things, and they got one in Adams.
