Getty Jonathan Adams walks off the field after a gam against KSU.
The Detroit Lions have a whole class of undrafted free agents set to come in and attack the opportunity of making the team, and one player is already being projected to get it done. Interestingly enough, it’s a player that has already received plenty of love this offseason and early in camp, as well.
Detroit signed a decent-sized class of undrafted free agents, and at this point, any of them have a chance at making the roster. According to Bleacher Report writer Alex Kay, however, only wideout Jonathan Adams stands out as a guy who could actually make the team.
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In fact, in a piece on the site looking at the most exciting UDFA players across rosters, Kay projected that Adams will do just that and crack the roster. As he said, both the Lions and Adams scored
He wrote:
“There isn’t a better team for an undrafted rookie wideout to end up with this offseason than the Lions. They are overhauling their receiving corps as part of a rebuild and let both Marvin Jones Jr. and Kenny Golladay—their top two wideouts—leave via free agency.
Jonathan Adams, a 6’2″, 210-pound prospect out of Arkansas State, could play a big part in the new-look offense. While he has only average speed, Adams is a great athlete with tremendous leaping ability.
He is relentless when going up to get the ball, coming down with a ton of highlight catches in college. He will make for an ideal weapon whom new quarterback Jared Goff can lean on in the middle of the field and in the red zone.
While he will have to compete for playing time with Tyrell Williams, Breshad Perriman, Kalif Raymond and fourth-round pick Amon-Ra St. Brown, Adams should have little issue making it past final cuts and getting on the field as soon as Week 1.”
That’s a bold prediction, but given his ability to make plays and his body type, there is no reason it can’t be right in the end. It will be interesting to see if Adams manages to come out strong in camp and the preseason in order to win a key roster battle in Detroit. It’s more than possible things could play out that way.
Adams Already Getting Praise From Dan Campbell
At the wideout spot, the Lions have a ton of competition in terms of young players as well as veterans. Already, some youngsters have been catching the attention of Lions’ boss Dan Campbell, even as the team has only a single weekend of work under their belt for the young players.
Speaking after the rookies and youngsters got on the field over the weekend, Campbell singled out a couple of players who have impressed him in a major way at the position. As he said, wideouts Tom Kennedy and Jonathan Adams have made a good first impression early on for the team.
Campbell said practice this week has been heavy on special teams, which makes sense since a lot of these guys will have to make the team, or at least make their biggest contributions on teams. At WR, he mentioned Jonathan Adams and Tom Kennedy, specifically.
Campbell was quick to say that he hasn’t been disappointed by any of the young players up to this point, but these wideouts have been very solid and caught the attention of the Detroit brass. Obviously, a big way they will have to make a case to stay is on special teams, so it is notable to hear that the players have impressed in a big way on that side of the ball.
Kennedy has been hanging around the Detroit practice squad since 2019, so if he gets a shot to crack the roster full-time in 2021, that would be a boost to his young career. Seeing Adams also get singled out this early was interesting as well.
Adams’ Stats and Highlights
Watching the tape, it’s tough to imagine how Adams went undrafted at all and wasn’t scooped up in the fifth or sixth round or sooner. He’s got the size NFL teams covet at wideout and has big play potential every time he goes up for the ball. Watching tape against Kansas State will many anyone a believer he can play at the NFL level, given three touchdowns in the game in what became a decent-sized upset in 2020. In college, Adams had 2,396 yards and 21 touchdowns in college, numbers that compare favorably to other wideouts who were drafted.
Adams is physical and has great hands, something the NFL puts a premium on. It will be downright fascinating to see what he can do when given a look in camp.
Some already believe he is primed to make the team.