Everyone in the AFC East saw that on Saturday, the New York Jets traded superstar defensive back Jamal Adams and a 2022 fourth-round draft pick to the Seattle Seahawks.

In return, New York acquired safety Bradley McDougald along with a 2021 first-round pick, 2021 third-round pick and a 2022 first-round pick.

That's an absolutely monstrous haul for Adams. That should set up the Jets nicely in the future.

At the same time though, they just lost one of the best defensive backs in all of football. And that certainly is not going to be easy to replace.

With that in mind, the Jets might not be as big of a threat in 2020 as they were set to be with Adams anchoring the defense.

So how does this trade alter the outlook of the AFC East this season and in the future?

Well there have been a lot of massive moves this offseason that have to do with the AFC East.

The Buffalo Bills acquired star wide receiver Stefon Diggs. Meanwhile, the Miami Dolphins made a few big defensive acquisitions and running back Jordan Howard – oh, and they drafted quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

Then there are the New England Patriots. While they lost Tom Brady (and kind of Rob Gronkowski if you want to count that). But they also added Cam Newton at quarterback, and that could be big.

So that's two new and talented quarterbacks in the division. And the one team not named the Jets that didn't get a new quarterback, added one of the best receivers in the game.

Everyone is getting better in the passing game, and the Jets just lost their biggest stopper in that area.

That's bad news.

Obviously, this will hurt the Jets a little on the field in 2020. They already were not favorites to win the division, and this only makes the uphill battle a little steeper.

The Jets still have a lot of promise, especially surrounding young quarterback Sam Darnold. But they are clearly more built for the future. Darnold needs to grow and they now have two more first-round draft picks to play with.

With that in mind, the Jets are still near the bottom of the division. The thing is, having Adams might not really have changed that though.

This was still going to be a 2020 race between the Bills and the Patriots. Maybe the Jets or Dolphins would surprise someone, but it's unlikely they would be doing that as soon as this year.

Both Miami and New York are in a position to build around young quarterbacks. And the best way to do that is through the draft (and maybe adding a few veterans in free agency who can guide the youngsters).

So the Adams trade does not really change anything in 2020. What it does do is change the future though.

Adams is a superstar. But it was becoming increasingly obvious that he would not be staying in New York after this season.

So instead of losing him for nothing, the Jets did two things.

First, they got a King's ransom in return for Adams. This gives New York the tools to build a winner in the not-so-distant future.

Second, they got to trade him to the team of their choice. Instead of Adams leaving in free agency, where he gets to pick his spot, New York traded him away.

Sure, there's every chance he leaves after this season anyways and gets to pick a spot, but now that's not as likely.

Now Seattle has a full year to try and work out a new contract with Adams, and they get to create a relationship with him. So even if they can't figure something out before the end of the year, they have an upper hand when free agency starts.

What this does is keep Jamal Adams away from other teams in the AFC East.

So the Jets won't have to worry about Jamal Adams in the division, while making some improvements of their own.

The immediate impact is minimal at best. New York got a good safety in Bradley McDougald in return for Adams. They should still be a competitive team that just isn't good enough to win the AFC East.

Two or three years down the road though? This is a team that could get absolutely loaded in the draft. These extra first-round picks could be the difference for the Jets.