Rams star receiver Davante Adams admired former Arizona Cardinals great Larry Fitzgerald from afar — and eventually embraced him as a mentee and role model.
In 17 seasons, Fitzgerald caught 1,432 passes for 17,492 yards, both of which rank second all-time, and 121 touchdowns, which ranks sixth.
In 11-plus seasons, Adams has 1,009 receptions for 12,533 yards and 117 touchdowns, which ranks seventh.
Adams can move closer to tying Fitzgerald in career touchdowns on Sunday when the Rams play the Cardinals at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
“Anytime you can be mentioned with any of the names that are coming up as these weeks unfold, scoring touchdowns, being up there with some of those guys… it’s all elite company and definitely blessed,” Adams said Thursday.
Adams said that early in his career, he met Fitzgerald after games and told him how much he respected him. The feeling was apparently mutual.
In 2019, Fitzgerald “took me under his wing” and set him up with a “very expensive” physician to help him work through turf toe injury.
“So we just got connected and I kind of just followed his way, the way he moved as a pro,” Adams said. “I had good examples in front of me on my team as well. But just having somebody like that who’s a football god, legend in this game, that obviously meant a lot to me to have somebody kind of take me under their wing, and so I definitely took advantage of it.”
Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald lines up against the Seattle Seahawks in December 2019.
(Abbie Parr / Getty Images)
Adams has 52 catches for 689 yards and 14 touchdowns, four shy of his career high set in 2020 with the Green Bay Packers.
Fitzgerald, who retired after the 2021 season, is a semifinalist for the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.
Adams said Fitzgerald’s success as a businessman off the field also has been an inspiration.
“There’s a lot of the same because I feel like I got a lot of depth to me,” Adams said. “And it’s not just a football aspect. … So just learning from that, seeing that there’s a way to expand and just as a person, you know, outside of football, that was the biggest inspiration for me.”