Rook gets Gronked
A dejected Jamal Adams stood at his locker after the Jets’ 24-17 loss Sunday and acknowledged that in matchups like that, “you find out who you are.”
The rookie safety was referring to his head-to-head battle with Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski — one in which Adams certainly showed his youth. Gronkowski caught two touchdowns and drew a 24-yard pass interference call with Adams guarding him.
The 6-foot-6 Pro Bowler first scored on a 2-yard out route as Adams struggled to keep up.
“Brady put it on real quick,” Adams said. “He delayed, then got it out real quick. Lost my leverage.”
On Gronkowski’s second touchdown — a 33-yard strike across the middle — Adams was again a step behind and dove to try to break up the pass but missed. Gronkowski reeled it in around the 20 and had just one man to beat on his way to the end zone.
Adams felt he was picked on the play, as wide receiver Chris Hogan was running alongside Gronkowski, but it didn’t appear to be much.
“You find out where you are. He made two catches on me for touchdowns,” Adams said. “Again, everyone is going to say what they want about me, which they can. That’s fine.”
Through the first five games, it has often been easy to forget “who” Adams is. At 21, he is the youngest player on the Jets’ active roster. The bumps along the way are to be expected, especially against a team such as the Patriots and a quarterback like Tom Brady, as the LSU product continues to adjust to the NFL.
Now, the Jets will get to find out something new about the guy they picked sixth overall in last spring’s draft: How does the youngster bounce back from a forgettable Sunday. If it’s any indication, Adams already was talking about next week’s game against Mi- ami just minutes after Sunday’s ended.
“We did not get the victory,” he said. “We have to move forward ... and go out there next weekend and get a win. I learn from the mistakes and go forward with the team.”