Perhaps the image has been dulled by hindsight, but to say Davante Adams had a disappointing second season in the NFL

Finishing out his rookie campaign with a strong performance against the Cowboys in the playoffs, Adams faced high expectations coming into his sophomore year. But plagued by knee and ankle injuries, his season quickly derailed. Adams seemed to catch a serious case of the yips, dropping almost 17% of the passes thrown his way and averaging just 9.7 yards on the passes he did catch. 

Even his last game of the season managed to be just a small step forward with two steps back: Adams caught four passes for 48 yards and a touchdown but left the Packers’ wildcard round win over the Redskins early, the victim of an ankle injury. He’d watch the next week as the Packers nearly knocked off the Cardinals thanks to a pair of Hail Marys from Aaron Rodgers to Jeff Janis. 

It wouldn’t become apparent for some time, but Adams was at a turning point. He was about to go on one of the most prolific tears in Packers history.

Adams puts 2015 behind him

First, Adams would have to overcome Jared Abbrederis. Well, the idea of Jared Abbrederis, that is. A fifth-round pick the same year as Adams, the hometown hero had tantalized Packers fans in his two training camps in Green Bay, though injuries had kept him off the field for most of his two regular seasons.

That was enough to set Abbrederis up as a natural counterpoint to Adams, though, and headed into the 2016 season, there was a real movement among fans in favor of keeping Abbrederis over Adams, a struggling former second-round pick.

That season, though, Adams put to rest any lingering questions about where he stood on the Packers’ wide receiver depth chart, proving to be at least equal with Jordy Nelson, a year removed from ACL surgery.

Adams finished his 2016 season with 75 catches for 997 yards and 12 touchdowns, career highs across the board. But he was just getting started.

Adams blossoms into a star

Adams followed up his stellar 2016 by nearly matching his full-season output in just 14 games in 2017, most of which came with Brett Hundley at the controls for the Packers.

Fully healthy and working with Aaron Rodgers for a full season, Adams was sublime in 2018, catching 111 passes for 1,386 yards and a whopping 13 touchdowns, despite again not playing a full season. 

Adams again dealt with injuries in 2019, but he finished on a tremendous hot streak, one that saw him post the following stat lines over his final three regular-season games and the Packers’ divisional contest against the Seahawks:

• 7 catches, 103 yards, 1 TD vs. Chicago

• 13 catches, 116 yards @ Minnesota

• 7 catches, 93 yards, 1 TD @ Detroit

• 8 catches, 160 yards, 2 TD vs. Seattle

His divisional round yardage total is a Packers’ playoff record, surpassing the 159 Jermichael Finley posted during the Packers’ 2009 shootout loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

The playoff stats don’t count toward his career totals, but he’s among the league leaders over the past four years even without his playoff numbers. Adams is one of just 15 players with 300 or more catches since 2016,  one of just 13 with 4,000 or more receiving yards, and one of just three with 35 or more touchdowns. Adams is the only player in the NFL with 40 or more receiving touchdowns since 2016.

Put differently, Adams would rank among the very best receivers in Packers history even if you only counted his four-season run from 2016 through 2019. In receiving yards, receptions, and receiving touchdowns, Adams ranks in the top 15 based solely on those four-year totals.

It also shouldn’t be forgotten that Adams has done all this despite a few nagging injuries. He’s played just one full season over the past four years, but still put up staggering numbers despite missing six games.

To get the Packers to the Super Bowl, Adams might have to be even better, a big ask for even an accomplished receiver. The 49ers have allowed just six 100-yard receivers all year, and only Julio Jones has passed the century mark in a win. But considering how far he’s come, it’s hard to rule out any kind of performance from Davante Adams.