Adrian Amos Signed By The New York Jets

Another former Packers joins Aaron Rodgers in New York: Will it ever end?!

This afternoon news broke from Jeremy Fowler of ESPN that former Packers safety Adrian Amos has signed a 1 year $4 million deal with the New York Jets.

Another former Packer in New York!

I can’t say that I’m surprised even though I didn’t anticipate Amos signing with New York. He’s the first Packers defender to join the Jets this off-season. So far it’s only been former offensive players that have signed on with the Jets: Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb, Billy Turner, Tim Boyle, Malik Taylor. 

The Packers made the calculated decision to move on from Amos earlier in the off-season. Trading away Aaron Rodgers meant that the Packers retaining older veteran free agents was unlikely. With Rodgers out the door and Jordan love taking over the Packers have cleared out older veteran players that had been staples of the team for the past few years. It’s out with the old and in with the new in Green Bay. 

Amos signed a 4 year $36 million deal with the Packers in 2019 after spending his first 4 seasons with the Chicago Bears. After 8 years in the NFC North Amos is out the door and headed to the AFC. 

He was a big part of the Packers defense and started every game at safety the past 4 years. The past couple seasons we’ve seen a dip in production regarding certain aspects of his game. 

Each of the past two seasons he’s allowed a worse pass rating the following year. He allowed a passer rating of 71.7 in 2020, 95.7 in 2021, and 123.8 in 2022. His touchdowns allowed jumped to 6 in both 2021 and 2022 after only allowing 3 in his first two seasons in Green Bay (per PFF). 

Considering Amos’ age and the fact that he hasn’t been nearly as productive as of late, he sees his yearly average more than cut in half from making $9 million/year to $4 million/year. 

I am unsure if there was interest from other teams. I wouldn’t disregard the possibility that Amos’ decision to choose the Jets was to play for a contender and reunite with teammate Aaron Rodgers. If he wants a ring, the Jets are the place to be. Rodgers has to be happy that he carried lots of his buddies with him. I’d imagine that makes it easier to get  comfortable with a new team. 

It seemed clear with the Packers not picking up Amos around the time that free agency began that they likely planned to move on. With Amos gone safety is one of the most uncertain positions for the Packers heading into 2023. Darnell Savage and Rudy Ford look to be the favorites to start in 2023 with a few other guys fighting for the starting spots.