An undrafted Illinois product who fought his way into a full-time starting safety job through four seasons of steady, physical play.
Tony Adams entered the league in 2022 as an undrafted free agent out of Illinois and has since become a dependable tackling safety, logging four seasons as a rotational and eventual full-time starter. His reunion with a familiar coaching staff in 2026 continues a career built on outworking his draft status.
Path to the league
Adams played college football at Illinois before going undrafted in 2022. He built his NFL career from the ground up, developing into a regular contributor through special teams and defensive snaps.
Career highlights
Across his first four NFL seasons, Adams appeared in 53 career games with 36 starts, recording 232 tackles, four interceptions, 16 passes defensed and 11 tackles for loss. He started 15 games in both the 2023 and 2024 seasons, recording three interceptions in 2023.
2025 season recap
Adams played 12 games in 2025, recording 31 solo tackles and five passes defensed. He signed with a new team in free agency in March 2026, reuniting with a coaching staff he previously worked under.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Tony Adams (safety)
- Pro Football Reference: Tony Adams
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
12 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | jets | 12 | 49 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2024 | jets | 15 | 84 | 42 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 2023 | jets | 15 | 83 | 55 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2022 | jets | 11 | 17 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Safety
- Group
- defense
- College
- Illinois
- Hometown
- Belleville, IL, USA
- Age
- 27
- Status
- active
