Todd Bowles and Mike Maccagnan couldn't hide their excitement. The moment NFL commissioner Roger Goodell read their draft selection of Jamal Adams aloud, cameras caught the two beaming inside the Jets' war room.

Adams was the player they coveted. The guy they never thought they'd get. Somehow, he slipped, and was there with the No. 6 pick.

Two months, 10 organized team activities and three minicamp practices have since passed. That's not a lot of time, but Adams' teammates already see what this hype is about.

"The things he has done so far?" cornerback Morris Claiborne told NJ Advance Media at his locker, shaking his head. "He's unbelievable."

Adams is atop the depth chart at safety, but isn't just occupying an area on the field. In most of the Jets' offseason workouts, he was arguably the best player out there.

Adams had a practice -- a single practice -- where he made a diving pass breakup, sacked the quarterback, intercepted a pass and forced a fumble. In another, he diagrammed the offense's play pre-snap, and adjusted the defense so the quarterback had nowhere to go with the ball. Teammate Sheldon Richardson came in for a coverage sack.

Each day, Adams seems to do something else. He doesn't look like a 21-year-old wide-eyed rookie, but a seasoned, savvy veteran. These were his first NFL practices -- albeit without pads -- yet Adams looked as comfortable as he did in college at LSU.

He appears to be the real deal. And the Jets' coach and GM aren't the only ones to see it now.

"He's been out here playing lights out," Claiborne said. "Picking up the defense, checking to different things, knowing what he wants to check to. He's having fun doing it, too. His spirit is awesome. He's having fun doing what he knows how to do, and that's football.

"I can't be more impressed with a young guy coming into the league, and, especially playing on that backend, doing the things he's done so far."

The Jets secondary was atrocious last year. They allowed 52 pass plays of 20-plus yards (14th most in NFL) and 13 of 40-plus (3rd most). They allowed 30 passing touchdowns (6th most) and intercepted just eight passes (second fewest).

They added Claiborne in free agency, and drafted safety Marcus Maye one round after Adams. Cornerback Juston Burris, who rarely played as a rookie in 2016, will have a much larger role, too.

The hope is the unit will be immensely improved. The glue to the equation is Adams.

"He's just a football player," Bowles said. "He made plays. He studies a lot, obviously. You don't just get that way without studying. But, he's a very instinctive player.

"We knew he was talented, but he's learning the defense like everybody else. He makes his mistakes and as he gets better with reps every day, we look for him to get better and better and try to help us."

Connor Hughes may be reached at chughes@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connor_J_Hughes. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.