Davante Adams
Davante Lavell Adams is an American professional football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League. He played two seasons of college football for the Fresno State Bulldogs and was named a second-team All-American in 2013 before being selected in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers. He is the only player in NFL history to lead the league in receiving touchdowns with three different teams.
Early in his career with the Packers, Adams was low in the wide receiver depth chart behind teammates Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb. After being named to his first Pro Bowl in 2017, Adams signed a four-year, $58 million contract extension. For the next four seasons, Adams was the top wide receiver on the team, forming a close bond with quarterback Aaron Rodgers that culminated in leading the league in receiving touchdowns in 2020 and setting career bests in receptions and receiving yards in 2021. During his eight-year tenure with the Packers, Adams only missed 13 games, was named First-team All-Pro two times, and was selected to the Pro Bowl on five occasions.
After contract negotiations failed between the Packers and Adams during the 2022 offseason, he was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders for a first-round and second-round draft pick. Adams then signed a five-year, $141 million contract that made him the highest-paid wide receiver at the time. In his first season with the Raiders, Adams led the league in receiving touchdowns and was named to his sixth consecutive Pro Bowl. He requested a trade during the 2024 season and was dealt to the New York Jets, reuniting him with Rodgers. Adams was released following the season and later signed a two-year deal with the Rams.
Early life
Davante Lavell Adams was born to Douglas Adams and Pamela Brown on December 24, 1992. He has a brother and two sisters. From East Palo Alto, California, Adams attended Palo Alto High School in neighboring Palo Alto, California. As a senior two-way starter for the Vikings football team, he led the school to a CIF state championship. He had 64 receptions for 1,094 yards and 12 touchdowns, and as a cornerback on defense he totaled 44 tackles, including two for a loss, two forced fumbles, an interception, and four passes defended. He also played basketball and was considered a two-star recruit in that sport. Lettering all four years in basketball, he averaged 9.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists as a senior. He was recruited by California State University, Fresno, University of Hawaiʻi, and San Diego State. Adams committed to play college football at Fresno State.College career
Adams attended California State University, Fresno, where he played on the Fresno State Bulldogs football team from 2011 to 2013.In 2011, Adams redshirted as a true freshman at Fresno State in his only season with then-head coach Pat Hill.
2012 season
In the 2012 season, Adams had a new head coach in Tim DeRuyter. He became an instant contributor in the Bulldogs' 9–4 season. In his collegiate debut, he had 118 receiving yards and two touchdowns in a win over the Weber State Wildcats on September 1, 2012. On September 29, against the San Diego State Aztecs, he had eight receptions for 102 yards. On October 6, against the Colorado State Rams, he had the first of eight consecutive games with a receiving touchdown. In the win, he had four receptions for 41 yards and two touchdowns. On October 27, a road game against the New Mexico Lobos, he had nine receptions for 198 yards and two touchdowns. On November 10, in a road game against the Nevada Wolf Pack, he had nine receptions for 120 yards and a touchdown. In the regular season finale against the Air Force Falcons, he had nine receptions for 141 yards and two touchdowns. On Christmas Eve, against the SMU Mustangs, he had 13 receptions for 144 yards and a touchdown in the 43–10 loss in the 2012 Hawaii Bowl. Overall, in the 2012 season, he had 102 receptions for 1,312 yards and 14 touchdowns. All three led the Mountain West Conference. He was the conference's Freshman of the Year and a freshman All-American. He was the MVP of the 2012 Hawaii Bowl.2013 season
Adams continued to be a very productive member of the offense in the Bulldogs' 11–2 season in 2013. He started the 2013 season with 14 receptions for 148 yards and two touchdowns in a 52–51 win over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. On September 20, against the Boise State Broncos, he had 12 receptions for 110 yards and a touchdown in the 41–40 victory to give the Bulldogs a 3–0 record. On October 5, in a road game against the Idaho Vandals, he had 16 receptions for 185 yards and three touchdowns in the 61–14 victory. Two weeks later, against the UNLV Rebels, he had eight receptions for 221 yards and four touchdowns in the 38–14 victory. Adams scored on a 75-yard touchdown to start the game. On November 23, against the New Mexico Lobos, he had nine receptions for 246 yards and four touchdowns in the 69–28 victory to help get the Bulldogs to a 10–0 record. In the following road game against the San Jose State Spartans, he had 13 receptions for 264 yards and three touchdowns in the 62–52 loss, Fresno State's first of the season. On December 7, against the Utah State Aggies in the regular season finale, he had nine receptions for 168 yards and a touchdown in the MWC Championship Game. In his final collegiate game, the 2013 Las Vegas Bowl against the USC Trojans, he had nine receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown. Overall, in the 2013 season, he led the nation with 131 receptions for 1,719 yards and 24 touchdowns. He set a Mountain West Conference record with his 24 touchdown receptions, eight more than any player in the country in 2013, and the total ranks fourth in single-season FBS history. He also set Fresno State career records for receptions and touchdown receptions despite playing just two seasons for the Bulldogs. He was named second-team All-America by The Associated Press.On December 27, 2013, Adams announced that he would forgo his final two college seasons and enter the 2014 NFL draft.
College statistics
Professional career
Green Bay Packers
2014–2017
Adams was selected in the second round with the 53rd overall pick by the Green Bay Packers in the 2014 NFL draft. He was the ninth wide receiver to be selected that year. On June 12, 2014, he signed a contract with the Packers.After playing in the number four receiver slot in his NFL debut in the 2014 season against the Seattle Seahawks, Adams took 37 snaps in the second game against the New York Jets, where he had 5 catches for 50 yards. Entrenched as the Packers' number three receiver, on October 2, Adams scored his first NFL touchdown on an 11-yard pass from Aaron Rodgers in a 42–10 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. The score was Rodgers' 200th career touchdown pass. On October 26, Adams had a personal-best 7 receptions in a loss to the New Orleans Saints. He tallied his first 100-yard receiving game on November 30 with six receptions for 121 yards in a 26–21 win over the New England Patriots. Though a distant third to Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, Adams' 446 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns were a solid rookie contribution to the 12–4 Packers. In the divisional round, Adams set the Packers' rookie record for receiving yards in a playoff game with 117 in the victory over the Dallas Cowboys, including a 46-yard touchdown. In the NFC Championship Game against the Seattle Seahawks, he was held to one reception for seven yards in the 28–22 overtime loss.
File:Davante Adams 2015-2016 playoffs.jpg|thumb|left|Adams catching a pass over Washington Redskins cornerback Quinton Dunbar during the Packers-Redskins playoff game in 2016
Adams started the 2015 season with four receptions for 59 yards in a 31–23 victory over the Chicago Bears. Adams missed three games after an ankle injury in Week 2. On November 8, against the Carolina Panthers, he had seven receptions for a season-high 93 yards. In the following game, he had a season-high 10 receptions for 79 yards in the loss to the Detroit Lions. On December 3, in the second divisional game against the Lions, he had his only touchdown of the season in the 27–23 victory. His second season was a "dud", finishing fourth on the team in receptions and receiving yards, with 1 touchdown, all for a team without star Jordy Nelson. However, his efforts preparing for 2016 earned him the unofficial "off-season MVP" award.
His work-ethic paid off, as Adams recorded five touchdowns through his first six games in the 2016 season. On October 26, Adams was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week after catching 13 passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns against the Bears in Week 7. He topped this total with a Packers' season-best 156 yards in a 47–25 road loss against the Tennessee Titans. On November 28, against the Philadelphia Eagles, he had 113 yards and two touchdowns in the 27–13 victory. Adams finished as the Packers' second-leading receiver with 997 yards on 75 catches for 12 touchdowns. Adams began the post-season with eight receptions including a touchdown, and the 13th-most post-season receiving yards in Packers history with 125 in a win over the New York Giants. He added 76 yards in the division win over the Cowboys, and a touchdown in the NFC Championship loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
Adams began the 2017 season with three receptions for 47 yards in a 17–9 home victory over the Seahawks. In Week 2, in a 34–23 loss to the Falcons, Adams had eight receptions for 99 yards, which included a 33-yard touchdown. In the Week 4 game against the Bears, Adams had to be taken to a hospital in an ambulance after a strong helmet-to-helmet hit by Chicago linebacker Danny Trevathan, who earned a 2-game suspension. The next week, he returned to record 7 receptions for 66 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game-winner with 11 seconds left against the Cowboys. Early in Week 6, starter Aaron Rodgers suffered a broken clavicle against the Minnesota Vikings, and would not return for nine weeks. With inexperienced back-up quarterback Brett Hundley, Adams averaged five receptions for 40 yards in three straight losses, before recording 90 yards on five receptions and the eventual game-winning touchdown in a Week 10 win over the Bears. He also went for 126 yards on eight receptions against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11, as well as 82 yards, including a season-long 55-yard touchdown, in a 31–28 road loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 12. After catching only four passes for 42 yards in Week 13 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Adams had his first 10-reception game of the season for another 82 yards, including the game-tying touchdown with 17 seconds left, and a 25-yard walk-off touchdown in overtime, to defeat the Cleveland Browns. At that point, he was tied for second in the NFL with 9 receiving touchdowns. In Week 15, Adams suffered another concussion following a helmet-to-helmet hit from Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis. Due to the concussion, Adams missed the final two games of the season. He finished the season starting in 14 games, and was first on the team with 74 catches for 885 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was named to his first Pro Bowl and was ranked 45th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.
On December 29, 2017, Adams signed a four-year, $58 million contract extension with the Packers.