All of a sudden, the hamstring injury that nagged Davante Adams is healed.
Adams missed the final three games of his tenure with the Las Vegas Raiders – and didn’t practice for three weeks – but after the big trade on Tuesday reunited the three-time All-Pro receiver with Aaron Rodgers, he isn’t even listed on the injury report for Sunday night.
Thus, Adams, 31, will make his New York Jets debut in a prime-time showdown at Pittsburgh with his wheels apparently intact.
Funny, how that progressed.
“He’s looked fantastic,” Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich told reporters of Adams’ work on the practice field this week.
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Talk about a quick healer. The Jets (2-4) were one of the two teams in the top tier of clubs that Adams sought to be traded to, the other being the New Orleans Saints, quarterbacked by another of Adams’ former teammates, Derek Carr.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens were on Adams’ second tier, with at least two of those teams making offers better than a third-round choice (which can increase to a second-round pick if Adams earns all-pro honors again). Adams didn’t want to consider the second tier, though, unless a trade could not be worked out with either the Jets or Saints, a person with knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss trade matters.
In any event, Adams joins a wide receiver crew – which includes Garrett Wilson, Allen Lazard and Mike Williams – that is among the deepest in the league. And Rodgers and Co. would surely welcome Adams’ healing power to apply to a sputtering offense.
And here’s another surprise: Williams, who missed two days of practice this week for “personal reasons,” is also pegged to play on Sunday night. Williams missed the two days after being called out by Rodgers after the tight loss against Buffalo for apparently not properly running his proper route during the final minutes, which contributed to a Rodgers interception that essentially sealed the Bills’ victory.
It’s fair to wonder if Williams’ absence was related to his mishap on Monday night. Or perhaps by the addition of Adams, which will push Williams down on the depth chart. He’s expected to be the fourth receiver, fueling speculation that he could soon be traded.
Williams, speaking to reporters on Friday, maintained that there was no connection between the Monday night drama and his absence.
Then again, as the Jets seek to snap a three-game losing streak, the mysteries persist.
Just one concussion suffered on ‘dynamic’ kickoffs
Love it or loathe it, the new “dynamic” kickoff has been a hit when it comes to at least two critical safety measures. The NFL reported that through six weeks, just one concussion and zero torn ACLs and MCLs occurred on kickoffs. And that’s with nearly double the number of returns (304 vs. 160) when compared to the same point a year ago.
Kickoff returns, it should be noted, are the plays on which the most concussions have occurred since the league began compiling the data in 2016. Yet in eliminating the ramp-up to high-speed collisions, the new kickoff rule is working as designed.
Although tweaks will likely come next season – the spot after touchbacks will probably be tinkered with – the NFL is hitting on its goal to get the kickoff return back in the game while reducing injuries. The 32% return rate is a significant uptick from the 17% rate through Week 6 in 2023. And the 29.3-yardline average drive start is desirable, too, given the boost it can provide for scoring drives.
NFL TV ratings anomaly: No election cycle drop…at least not yet
Usually, the NFL suffers a ratings dip in presidential election years. It’s happened during each cycle since 1996. Not this time.
“We’ll take it,” Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s chief media executive, told USA TODAY Sports.
The NFL averaged 17.5 million viewers through five weeks, which represents a 1% increase since last year and the league’s best start since 2015.
Rolapp surmises that factors pushing the league’s overall numbers – including the expanding number of streaming platforms carrying NFL games and the drama from competition with the league tying its mark of one-score games at this point of the season – have helped prevent the typical election-year decline.
“It also tells me that history doesn’t always predict the future,” Rolapp said.
Then again, maybe the NFL – with 29 of the top 30 telecasts this year – is perfectly positioned for, well, the run-off.
“If you want to find election coverage, political coverage, there are a lot of places to go, almost 24/7,” Rolapp said. “You can’t escape it. I think we offer something different in this environment, and I think people enjoy that.”
As the presidential race intensifies for the stretch run, it’ll be interesting to see whether the NFL continues to buck the election cycle trend.
If Dan Campbell could still play…
With his relentless running style, David Montgomery inspires Dan Campbell in a special way. After last Sunday’s blowout win at Dallas, which included a few breathtaking, multiple effort runs by Montgomery, the fiery Lions coach was moved to the point where he could envision playing again.
“Look, these old bones can’t play anymore, right?” said Campbell, who played 11 NFL seasons as a tight end. “This old, beat-up body. But he just makes you…you just wish you could play with that guy. I wish I could have played with him. He’s that type of runner and he’s that type of teammate. And it’s inspiring.”
Said Montgomery, “It would be kind of cool to see him in front of me.”
Well, at least Campbell can look forward to keeping his sideline view of Montgomery for a while. Last weekend, the Lions signed Montgomery to a two-year, $18.25 million extension that keeps the hard-charging back in Detroit through 2026. It was another in a series of moves by Lions GM Brad Holmes to keep core players intact.
In recent months, the Lions have re-upped tackle Penei Sewell, quarterback Jared Goff and receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, And now Montgomery.
“We didn’t see ourselves a year or two from now not having ‘5’ with us,” said Campbell, alluding to Montgomery’s uniform number. “We just didn’t see it. It didn’t make sense. He’s too much like us. He’s too much a part of us. He’s everything we’re looking for, and we’re not going to just let that guy leave, so I’m glad he’s here to stay.”
Quick slants
— From the better-late-than-never department: Darrell Green will have his No. 28 jersey retired by the Washington Commanders during a halftime ceremony on Sunday, a day after he receives a key to the city from Washington, D.C., mayor Muriel Bowser. The Hall of Fame cornerback and former NFL Man of the Year Award winner played 20 years with Washington and was a member of three Super Bowl championship teams. It’s weird that for a class act who was so fast – Green won the NFL’s Fastest Man Competition four times – it took so long time for this honor to come. Yet it’s also a checkmark for the franchise’s new leadership under new owner Josh Harris to correct yet another wrong from the previous regime.
— Coin toss, anyone? The Chiefs won two of their three Super Bowls in five years against the 49ers, and Patrick Mahomes has never lost against San Francisco (4-0). Yet the undefeated Chiefs are listed as 1 ½-point underdogs for the Super Bowl rematch at Santa Clara. It will be the 10th regular-season matchup between teams that met in the Super Bowl the previous year, with the defending champs holding a 6-3 edge. While the 49ers (3-3) may have revenge in mind, it’s worth noting that KC coach Andy Reid has a 21-4 mark when coming off a bye. And Mahomes is 11-1-1 as an underdog.