Davante

Adams

Adams was mostly a non-factor in this one, although his 12-yard reception in the fourth quarter did help set up an eventual touchdown run by Kyren Williams to give the Rams a 17-10 lead. Adams appeared to have briefly left the game with an injury, but was later back on the field taking snaps. He also secured a 12-yard pass on the Rams’ final drive in overtime to help set up the team’s game-winning field goal. Sunday’s game against the Bears wasn’t the kind of game we have been accustomed to seeing from Adams this season. He’ll look to bounce back in next week’s road matchup against the Seahawks.

Adams and Stafford did not exactly look like they were on the same page for most of this game, though it should be noted that Adams dropped a few balls. It also bears mentioning that he’d probably have had 90 yards if not for a helmet-to-helmet breakup in the third quarter that sent Adams briefly for a concussion check. As far as “getting his legs” back fantasy games, it’s hard to ignore the pass volume that Adams was able to generate here despite leaving eight targets on the ground. Adams will clearly be involved in the high-end WR conversation for the Divisional Round, though this game gives us some pause on how high expectations should be set.

Adams looks likely to be full-go from the jump after three full sessions of practice this week. He probably could have played at any point after the Rams’ unfortunate Week 16 loss to Seattle, but there wasn’t much reason for him to risk it. He’ll be one of the top playoff best ball picks and DFS plays for this week with a solid matchup against the Panthers pass defense.

Rams head coach Sean McVay has already said Adams is expected to play in the team’s Wild Card matchup against the Panthers Saturday. The Rams only held a walkthrough Tuesday, but the estimation that Adams would be a full practice participant is good news. The veteran sat out the last few games of the regular season since aggravating his hamstring injury in Week 15 but the Rams will get their goal-line target back for the playoffs.

Adams hasn’t played since he re-aggravated his hamstring injury in Week 15 against the Lions. The 33-year-old receiver enjoyed one of his best seasons, catching 14 touchdowns from Matthew Stafford in 14 games. The Rams tried to recreate Adams in the aggregate, using tight ends and depth receivers in his spot over the last few weeks. Stafford and McVay have to be thrilled that Adams is coming back for the playoff game against the Panthers, a team that beat the Rams in Week 13.

The Rams are playing for the No. 5 seed and the right to take on the NFC South winner in the Wild Card Round today. Their starters will get the nod, but Adams is resting for one more work with an eye on the postseason. He should be back next week. Ferguson was a late-week addition to the injury report because of a hamstring issue. Colby Parkinson and Davis Allen will handle the bulk of the tight end snaps this week.

Adams returned to practice on Thursday for some light practices to close the week. He was listed as questionable, though that seemed like an optimistic designation at the time. The Rams are playing their starters this week in an effort to get the No. 5 seed, but they don’t need to rush Adams back to take down Arizona. Adams will get the week off and should be ready for the Wild Card Round.

It’s an aggressive listing considering he just started practicing on Thursday. We’d be surprised if Adams was active, but we suppose we can’t rule out Sean McVay giving him a little open run and seeing where he’s at against the Cardinals. We’ll get better reports closer to the pre-game, but we would break ties against Adams if at all possible even if he’s available against Arizona.

Adams sat out yesterday, and head coach Sean McVay has already said he does not expect Adams to play this week. The Rams are currently in the NFC’s No. 6 playoff seed. If they beat the Cardinals and the Seahawks beat the 49ers, the Rams can jump up to the No. 5 seed. The improvement could be helpful, but may not be worth risking Adams’ playoff availability.

Adams hasn’t played since aggravating his hamstring injury in Week 15. With little to play for this week, he won’t be active versus the Cardinals on Sunday. Xavier Smith led the Rams with 67 yards on four catches last week. Even if Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua start in Week 18, we suspect they could leave the game early, teeing Smith up for another high-volume day.