AFC Notes: Dolphins, Jets, Patriots

Dolphins

• The NFL and NFLPA are discussing a 2021 salary cap floor of $175 million, which is down from the $198.2 million this year. It’s possible that the figure could be pushed higher, depending on the revenue losses incurred by the league from the 2020 season.
• Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com projects the Dolphins to have $28,867,129 of cap space next year, assuming the cap is set at $175 million.

Jets

• Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports the Jets and Seahawks started serious trade discussions about S Jamal Adams about a month ago. 
• Mehta adds the framework for the deal was in place about five days ago, while the two sides waited for a little more clarity about the future of the salary cap. 
• ESPN’s Rich Cimini says the Jets were fuming when Adams went after team owner Woody Johnson on Twitter and HC Adam Gase in an interview with Mehta, viewing it as a temper tantrum when his contract demands weren’t met. 
• Adams was reportedly seeking nearly $20 million per year in an extension, per the Athletic’s Connor Hughes. The top of the safety market is just under $15 million a year. 
• While the deal was in the works long before Adams’ explosive interview, SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano writes some people around the league think that might have been Adams trying to push the deal through. 
• Brian Costello of the New York Post points out new Jets S Bradley McDougald is no stranger to replacing star safeties, as he helped the Seahawks transition from star safeties Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor the past few seasons. 
• He’ll slide into the strong safety role vacated by Adams, while Costello expects Marcus Maye to stay at free safety and third-round rookie Ashtyn Davis to play all over the secondary.
• The NFL and NFLPA are discussing a 2021 salary cap floor of $175 million, which is down from the $198.2 million this year. It’s possible that the figure could be pushed higher, depending on the revenue losses incurred by the league from the 2020 season.
• Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com projects the Jets to have $28,861,108 of cap space next year, assuming the cap is set at $175 million.

Patriots

Seahawks TE Greg Olsen had the same reaction as the rest of the NFL world did when he saw his former quarterback, Cam Newton, sign with the Patriots. The first was shock at how cheaply New England acquired the former MVP — “My head popped off when I saw how much he signed for. It’s the all-time greatest deal.” — and the second was intrigue at how Patriots HC Bill Belichick would use a weapon like Newton.

As for how the one-of-a-kind Newton would fit with the sometimes-dour Belichick, a doubt Newton himself even had when learning of New England’s interest, Olsen says the two men share one very important thing in common: they both want to win. 

“From talking to guys that have played in New England, I think the public persona of Bill is one thing, and I’m sure there’s truth to some of that,” Olsen said in an interview on ESPN via Mike Reiss. “But I think behind closed doors, he understands what each of his players individually needs — the support, the space at times — to bring out their best. If you look across Belichick’s coaching career, he’s coached a lot of different style players. The one thing he’s going to learn about Cam is that no one wants to win more. And no one is going to come every day and practice harder and train harder and prepare better.”

• Reiss says it’s fair to assume Patriots OC Josh McDaniels would serve as the interim head coach in 2020 if Belichick were to miss any time.