Davante Adams was the Rams’ biggest addition this offseason, bringing the veteran receiver to Los Angeles as a free agent. With Cooper Kupp being cut, the Rams sought the services of Adams, one of the NFL’s most prolific wideouts of this generation.

Not only does Adams bring talent to the receiving corps, but his knowledge and experience will only help younger players such as Puka Nacua, Tutu Atwell, Jordan Whittington and others. It’s still early in the offseason but Adams has wasted no time making a positive impression on his coaches and teammates.

“I think the first thing I’ve been really impressed with his willingness to share, his openness and his refreshing humility in terms of being coached but then being able to offer his insight,” Sean McVay said of Adams. “It’s fun to be able to listen to – he and Matthew have a dialogue of their accumulated experiences and getting on the same page for how they want to be able to do things. But he’s been great. Similar to what I was just saying about Terrance (Ferguson), but he’s been great in the meetings, incredibly detail-oriented. You can see how smart he is. There are a couple things that are new in terms of the vernacular, but a lot of this stuff is same as or maybe just a couple subtle tweaks. But his ability to be able to learn, his ability to be able to listen and then ultimately lead has been a big factor.” 

Kupp taught the Rams’ younger receivers so much over the years and his leadership will certainly be missed in the locker room. But McVay is thrilled to have another veteran like Adams in the building, saying there’s “nothing more powerful” than the influence he can have on his teammates.

“I think there’s nothing more powerful,” McVay said. “Seeing is better than said. The way he moves, but then his willingness to share. I think what’s cool is, is these guys, the more comfortable they get, the more comfortable they’ll be to be able to ask questions.”

Matthew Stafford has watched Adams from afar for years, especially after being division rivals in the NFC North. He fully approved the Rams’ decision to sign Adams in free agency and he’s already enjoying the opportunity to throw him passes in practice and develop chemistry.

“Oh, it was good,” Stafford said of his connection with Adams on Day 1 of OTAs. “It’s always a work in progress. We’re always talking out there, which is a lot of fun. A guy that’s a veteran player, has played a lot of football, and had a lot of success, so it’s fun just trying to communicate as much as I can with him. Obviously, he’s made some great plays today but it’s fun to work with guys that understand the game and still have a lot left in the tank. So, it was good.”

It shouldn’t take Stafford and Adams very long to develop a rapport, especially after seeing Kupp and Nacua both put up record-setting numbers in their first seasons with Stafford throwing them the ball.

And as Stafford mentioned, Adams being in his 12th NFL season gives him a level of experience that not many other receivers have. That should make the transition into Los Angeles’ offense even easier for him.

Besides building chemistry on the field, Stafford and Adams have been texting off the field to help things along when it comes to each other’s tendencies.

“Yeah, I was texting with him late last week a little bit and just saying, ‘Hey man, you’re a great player because of your skillset and I’m going to continue to work and watch… whether that’s watching live after I throw and then go back and rewatch and make sure what I was seeing and feeling at that moment was real,’” Stafford said. “Then we just talk about it too, right? After every single set, it feels like we’re over there talking about, ‘Hey, this is kind of how I’m thinking that I’m going to come out of this or feel that.’ And it’s just constant dialogue. Honestly, those are the best relationships I’ve had with the receivers and the most success that I’ve had is guys that want to talk to you on what they felt, what they were doing. I can also say, ‘Hey, this is what it looks like from my angle and go from there.’ But he definitely has that feeling, he has that understanding and that’s a huge positive.”

There’s a lot of excitement in the Rams’ building about the upcoming season and Adams is a big reason for that.