Getty The Chicago Bears signed ex-Vikings and Colts WR Rodney Adams
The Chicago Bears just added another wide receiver. Per NFL insider Tom Pelissero, the team has agreed to terms with wide receiver Rodney Adams, who had recently worked out for the Bears at Halas Hall last week.
Adams had retired in 2018, only to get reinstated this past January. He’ll now get an opportunity in Chicago, where the wide receivers’ room is already overflowing.
Adams was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He appeared in one game for the Vikings (he did not start) that year before being waived and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Colts in 2018 after he was released by Minnesota, but retired four months later. He didn’t play at all in 2019. He was reinstated in 2020, and was waived by the Colts shortly after, as he was still a member of their team.
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Who is Rodney Adams? A Brief History
The 6-1, 189 pound Adams spent his first collegiate season at the University of Toledo before transferring to South Florida, where he spent the remaining three years of his career. Over his three seasons at South Florida, Adams put up pretty solid numbers. He had over 800 yards receiving in his junior and senior seasons, and he caught 137 passes for a total of 1,982 yards and 16 touchdowns over his three years with the Bulls.
Adams hasn’t started a game in the regular season, but he shared a hype video of sorts on his Instagram page earlier this year showing him making some impressive plays in college and in the preseason with Minnesota.
One Plus? Adams Also Has Special Teams Experience…
Adams is still young; he’s only 25, and his injury history has no major red flags, so there’s some potential upside there, especially considering his experience on special teams.
In addition to playing wide receiver at USF, Adams returned kicks, and he was pretty good at it. He had 44 returns for 1,123 yards (that’s a 25.5 yard average per return) and a touchdown.
In addition to roster locks Allen Robinson, Anthony Miller, Ted Ginn Jr. and rookie Darnell Mooney, the Bears already have a surplus of wideouts currently still listed on their roster, including Riley Ridley, Javon Wims, Reggie Davis, Trevor Davis, Thomas Ives and Ahmad Wagner.
Gadget player and primary kickoff returner Cordarrelle Patterson is also technically listed as a wide receiver, and the Bears could be looking at Adams as a potential backup for a guy like Patterson, who does everything from return kicks to play wideout to run the ball. While it’s unlikely he’ll make the roster, the Bears could stash Adams on their practice squad to cover their bases in case Patterson gets hurt.
One running joke this offseason poked fun at the Bears’ vast number of tight ends, but now, the growing list of wideouts has hit 12, making their receivers room more crowded than it has been all year. It will be interesting to see whether Adams can impress enough to make the team in some capacity moving forward.
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