Minnesota Vikings defender Jamal Adams has suffered a season-ending knee injury during his team debut against the New York Giants on Saturday.
The 30-year-old veteran was carted off the field during the second quarter of the preseason opener at MetLife Stadium after playing just 11 defensive snaps.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport confirmed on Sunday that Adams sustained a right knee injury that will keep him out for the entire 2026 season.
The injury occurred with 13 minutes and 32 seconds remaining in the second quarter as Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Malachi Fields. Adams crumbled to the turf with an apparent non-contact injury while tracking wide receiver Calvin Austin III across the field.
He received treatment in the sideline medical tent before being carted to the locker room for further evaluation.
The diagnosis marks a major injury blow for both Adams and the Vikings, who signed the defensive star to a one-year contract in July on the eve of training camp.
Adams was returning to familiar territory at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where he played three seasons for the New York Jets after being selected in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft as a safety.
Career background and positional switch
Since 2020, Adams has played for several NFL franchises, including the Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans, and most recently the Las Vegas Raiders.
Despite earning three Pro Bowl selections earlier in his career, the later stages of his career have been marred by frequent injuries. Adams was limited to playing nine or fewer games in each of the 2022, 2023, and 2024 seasons.
After starting his career at safety, Adams made the switch to linebacker last season while with the Raiders. Minnesota coaches had been utilizing him at both safety and linebacker throughout training camp.
Head coach reaction
Speaking before the start of the second half on Saturday, Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell expressed sadness over the loss of the veteran defender.
"In such a short amount of time, Jamal has done such an unbelievable job coming here," O'Connell said. "You feel his passion every single day. Certainly felt it spending a few moments with him before they took him in."
O'Connell praised the leadership, toughness, and experience that Adams brought to the team during his brief tenure.
"You're just crushed for him, the role he was kind of paving for himself, and then just having a personality, experience, toughness that he brought in such a short amount of time," O'Connell added. "We're going to miss him."
