LOS ANGELES (AP) — Davante Adams has long been one of the most physical wide receivers in the NFL, but he couldn’t break free from the tenacious recruitment press of Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay.
“Honestly, the period hasn’t been too long since I’ve been a free man, and Sean wanted to make sure he kept it that way, that’s for sure,” Adams said at his introductory news conference Thursday.
Adams said McVay’s attentiveness was one of the main reasons he signed a two-year contract that could be worth up to $46 million to join the Rams. Many of those conversations took place while Adams, 32, was vacationing in Japan.
“And, I mean, I thought he was out there too,” Adams said. “I was talking to him more than I was talking to my wife. But he definitely showed a lot of interest.”
Adams said he first met McVay at the Kentucky Derby in 2019. The previous October, Adams had five receptions for 133 yards for the Green Bay Packers against the Rams. McVay expressed his appreciation for Adams’ play, which first sparked the idea of a potential collaboration.
It wasn’t until Adams became a free agent for the first time after 11 seasons with the Packers, Las Vegas Raiders and New York Jets that he fully understood how much McVay appreciated him.
“He sent me a couple highlight tapes of myself,” Adams said. “It was kind of Jon Gruden-esque a little bit. And you know how he is with ball, so he’s breaking down every single clip. The first one was like seven minutes, and then he sent another one that was like probably another two minutes where he’s just going through everything.
“I thought he took that job to be on TV for a minute when I was watching it, but, yeah, it just shows how much ball means to him, how much of a priority I was for him.”
Adams is coming off his sixth career 1,000-yard receiving season, finishing with 85 catches, 1,063 yards and eight touchdowns in 14 games with the Raiders and Jets. He offers production and experience to compensate for the loss of stalwart Cooper Kupp, who was released after the Rams could not find a trade partner for the MVP of Super Bowl 56.
The presence of Adams could also bring a different aspect to McVay’s offense, which has tended to rely on putting Kupp or breakout star Puka Nacua in motion to give receivers free release off the line of scrimmage to find space in the short or intermediate levels of the defense.
At 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, Adams can create separation on his own. He is also adept in the red zone at making contested catches, something the Rams struggled with this past season. They ranked 25th in goal-to-go touchdown percentage in the regular season and were 2 for 5 in scoring red-zone touchdowns in an NFC divisional playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in January.
“He knows my football acumen, and it’s nothing I’m going to come in, you know, put my foot down, ‘I know ball so much, do it my way,’” Adams said of his discussions with McVay. “But it kind of just helps when you both see it the same way. Right now, I kind of envision it looking like that for the year.”
In Adams’ estimation, the Rams have everything he could have wanted in a new destination. They have a team capable of challenging for the Super Bowl, as demonstrated by their 28-22 defeat in the snow to give the eventual champion Eagles their toughest test of the postseason. They have a proven veteran quarterback in Matthew Stafford, who previously accentuated the game of another big-bodied receiver in Calvin Johnson.
The Rams also allow Adams to be closer to family and friends, returning to his native California after growing up in the Bay Area and attending college at Fresno State.
Even Adams’ No. 17 jersey was available, with Nacua making a voluntary switch after his first two standout seasons as a professional.
“Before I even knew for sure if I was headed to LA, he was already talking about wearing (No.) 12,” Adams said. “For everybody out there that want to hate me for making them buy new jerseys, I did not tell him. I didn’t pay him. I didn’t do anything. That was out of the kindness of his heart, and he wore it in college so I guess it makes sense.”
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