Age: 24
1st season in pro football
College: Utah State
Height: 6’1” Weight: 195
Prelude:
Following an outstanding season at Utah State in 1972, Adams was drafted in the 14th round by the NFL’s San Diego Chargers for 1973, but could not get past a fellow rookie, Dan Fouts, or young veteran Wayne Clark and an over-the-hill Johnny Unitas on the depth chart. He signed with the Southern California Sun of the new World Football League for ’74.
1974 Season Summary
Appeared in all 20 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Passing
Attempts – 510 [2]
Completions – 276 [2]
Yards – 3905 [1]
Most yards, game – 376
Completion percentage – 54.1 [4]
Yards per attempt – 7.7 [2]
TD passes – 23 [4]
Interceptions – 18 [4]
Passer rating – 79.4 [3]
300-yard passing games – 3
Rushing
Attempts – 60
Yards – 217
Yards per attempt – 3.6
TDs – 8 [8, tied with four others]
Scoring
TDs – 8 [15, tied with five others]
Action Points - 2
Points – 58 [16, tied with Dennis Homan]
(Note: Touchdowns counted for 7 points in the WFL)
Postseason: 1 G (WFL First Round playoff vs. The Hawaiians)
Pass attempts – 21
Pass completions – 11
Passing yardage – 189
TD passes – 1
Interceptions – 1
Rushing attempts – 1
Rushing yards – 3
Average gain rushing – 3.0
Rushing TDs – 0
Awards & Honors:
WFL MVP: League (co-winner), Sporting News
1st team All-WFL: Sporting News
Sun went 13-7 to win Western Division. Lost WFL First Round playoff to The Hawaiians (32-14) – several key players refused to play after failing to be paid for the regular season finale.
Aftermath: Joined the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs in 1975 and played four seasons there. Strictly a backup, Adams started a total of seven games and never threw more than 92 passes in any one year. Moved on to the CFL and played for the Toronto Argonauts, where he again achieved some success as he passed for 2692 yards and 13 TDs in 1979. However, injuries limited his playing time in ’80 and he eventually retired. Adams made a brief comeback, returning to the Minnesota Vikings as a 37-year-old replacement player for three games during the NFL players’ strike in 1987, and put up good numbers, although the replacement team lost all three contests.
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MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).
[Updated 4/12/12]
[Updated 2/15/14]