Jamal Adams was a spectator during practice on the first day of Seahawks minicamp, chatting up teammates, coaches and general manager John Schneider.
But while the Pro-Bowl safety—who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury last season that required surgery—may not quite be ready to practice just yet, he made it clear he's well on his way to being ready for the start of training camp.
"God is good, man," Adams said Tuesday. "I'm back. I'm feeling good, I'm just going to take it day by day, and obviously be ready for training camp."
In addition to his second shoulder surgery in as many years, Adams also had two fingers fused, estimating that over the past two years he has dislocated his ring finger 10 times and his middle finger a dozen times.
When asked what he's able to do from a physical standpoint, Adams said, "Everything."
Fellow Pro-Bowl safety Quandre Diggs was also in attendance at minicamp but not practicing, five months removed from a Week 18 leg injury that required surgery, though both safeties did do some on-field work in the walkthrough that preceded practice.
"It's good," Diggs said of his leg. "It's just a process still. I'm still working. Feeling good."
On being back with the team—like several other injured players, Diggs has mostly rehabbed at home during the optional part of the offseason workout program—Diggs said. "It felt good. It's always good to be around the guys. It's a blessing to be able to be back out here playing. What is it five months? So I'm right on schedule. I'm feeling good. So we'll see. I'm just enjoying it."
Diggs, like Adams, said the plan is to be ready for the first day of camp.
And while both players have spent much of their offseason focused on getting healthy, Seattle's two safeties have also been learning a new defense that will be led by defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt, with associate head coach – defense Sean Desai and defensive passing game coordinator/defensive backs coach Karl Scott also having a big influence on the back end of the defense. In addition to the defense looking different up front with more 3-4 looks, both safeties said some changes on the back end should help them and the entire defense make more plays, particularly with multiple coverage looks.
"You can disguise everything, you can move around, I can be in the box sometimes, I can be in a back end sometimes, I can be blitzing, whatever the case may be," Adams said. "So it's a really creative defense, and I'm just looking forward to it."
Said Diggs, "It's multiple with the different coverages you can run and make it all look alike. You can do a single-high shell and run different coverages, you can do a two-high shell and run different deals. You can't tell which safety is in the box, which safety is not in the box. I think it's going to be dope. You guys will see—I'm not going to give everything away—but I think you guys will see real soon.
"I think it's going to help both of us. Guys can't automatically tag (Adams) and say he's in the box and he's blitzing and slide his way…. You don't know the coverages, you don't know what we're in, you don't know what checks we have. I think that's going to be dope."
Both players are familiar with the new defense, with Adams having run similar schemes both at LSU and with the New York Jets, and with Diggs playing a similar defense early in his career in Detroit, so even if they've missed time this offseason recovering from injuries, both expect to be up to speed quickly when camp starts, and ultimately, both players expect the changes to produce results.
"You can be so creative in so many ways, and not just me," Adams said, noting that the defense will also help Diggs and Seattle's corners make plays. "… We can all do everything in the back end to where we can be creative and give offenses problems, and that's the goal."
