Sean McVay's custom highlight tapes of Davante Adams helped lure the WR to Rams

Davante Adams has long been one of the most physical wide receivers in the NFL, but he couldn't break free from the tenacious recruitment press of Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay.

"Honestly, the period hasn't been too long since I've been a free man, and Sean wanted to make sure he kept it that way, that's for sure," Adams said at his introductory news conference Thursday.

Adams said McVay's attentiveness was one of the main reasons he signed a two-year contract that could be worth up to $46 million to join the Rams. Many of those conversations took place while Adams, 32, was vacationing in Japan.

"And, I mean, I thought he was out there too," Adams said. "I was talking to him more than I was talking to my wife. But he definitely showed a lot of interest."

Adams said he first met McVay at the Kentucky Derby in 2019. The previous October, Adams had five receptions for 133 yards for the Green Bay Packers against the Rams. McVay expressed his appreciation for Adams' play, which first sparked the idea of a potential collaboration.

It wasn't until Adams became a free agent for the first time after 11 seasons with the Packers, Las Vegas Raiders and New York Jets that he fully understood how much McVay appreciated him.

"He sent me a couple highlight tapes of myself," Adams said. "It was kind of Jon Gruden-esque a little bit. And you know how he is with ball, so he's breaking down every single clip. The first one was like seven minutes, and then he sent another one that was like probably another two minutes where he's just going through everything.

"I thought he took that job to be on TV for a minute when I was watching it, but, yeah, it just shows how much ball means to him, how much of a priority I was for him."

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