Getty Davante Adams #17 of the Green Bay Packers catches the ball during the second quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on October 10, 2021 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Davante Adams had a good feeling about what he was going to do in Cincinnati, so good that he even called his shot for the Green Bay Packers.
Adams once again made his case for being considered the best wide receiver in the NFL on October 10, catching 11 passes for a career-best 206 yards and a touchdown during the Packers’ 25-22 win over the Bengals in Week 5. He also gained at least 15 yards on seven of his catches, which helped vault him to the top of the league’s leaderboards.
Adams now leads the NFL in total receptions (42), receiving yards (579), big catches of 20 yards or more (10) and first downs on receptions (28) after his massive performance against the Bengals; although, it probably comes as no surprise to some members of his family — including his wife, Devanna — after Adams told them ahead of time he could feel it would be a career-high day for him.
“I told at least three people outside of the building, talking to family, one of my cousins,” Adams told reporters following Sunday’s 25-22 win in Cincinnati. “Talking to my wife, I told her, ‘I feel like this is going to be my career-high this game.’ So, I’m clairvoyant or I know what I’m talking about.”
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Adams Gives Packers No Reason to Doubt
Adams has no shortage of confidence when he is needed to deliver in big moments for the Packers. They faced a good Bengals team on the road on Sunday, but it was hard to tell based on how effectively Adams got himself open and the way he seemed to will passes from Aaron Rodgers directly into his hands. After the game, Rodgers struggled to even think of the last time Adams surprised him because he’s “just so talented.”
“Even when you know that I’m probably going to him, he still finds a way to get open and makes a big catch and breaks a tackle,” Rodgers said, chuckling. “I mean, the guy’s a special player. We hit him on some plays against some coverages we hadn’t expected or run those plays against over the last couple of years. On the (59-yard) deep ball, I haven’t hit that type of reaction on that play since 2009 at Arizona in Week 17, I believe it was. So, he’s such a talented guy. (I’ve) got to find ways to keep getting him the ball.”
As Adams describes it, he is just “built for those moments.” His impressive start to the 2021 season would only seem to support that notion, especially after all the doom and gloom about the Packers in the offseason that heavied expectations on their shoulders. Adams has caught for more than 120 yards in three of the Packers’ four consecutive wins, while one of those games — Week 3 in San Francisco — saw him come down with a pair of game-saving receptions that set up a walk-off victory.
“There’s a reason why he’s got that 99 rating in Madden,” Packers head coach Matt LaFleur quipped after the game.
Adams Describes ‘Really Weird’ Deja Vu
Clairvoyance might not be Adams’ only “supernatural” gift. The Packers star wide receiver also told reporters in Week 5’s postgame that he sometimes experiences deja vu in the middle of plays when he is catching passes thrown his way, He also said those “really weird” moments help remind him that he has been in similarly important situations before, boosting his confidence to make the play.
“I have this thing in games where I have deja vu during the play,” Adams said. “It’s like a really weird thing. I told Quez (Marquez Valdes-Scantling) and they thought something was wrong with me. I told him about it probably like two years ago where sometimes I catch the ball and as I’m catching the football, I’ll like subconsciously have a quick flashback to something that’s happened before. I don’t know, it’s like some weird ‘That’s So Raven’ s***. So when I get in those moments, I think it kind of helps me because I’ve been there before.”