The story of Davante Adams coming to the Raiders has often surrounded his reunion with his college QB Derek Carr. The two of them came up together, putting up some monster numbers at Fresno State to put both of them squarely on the NFL radar.
But there’s another reunion in Las Vegas for Adams with a man he credits with helping make him into the All-Pro receiver he is today.
When Adams entered the NFL in 2014, his wide receivers coach was Edgar Bennett. The next season Bennett was promoted to offensive coordinator, a position he held for three seasons from 2015-17. After that, Bennett was let go along with Mike McCarthy’s entire staff, and Bennett joined Jon Gruden’s new staff in Las Vegas, returning to his previous role as wide receiver coach.
As if Josh McDaniels had an inkling Adams could be an option, the new Raiders head coach made Bennett the one position coach he retained from the previous staff. And Bennett’s presence made for one more friendly face when the team made the trade to acquire Adams.
“Well, E.B. was one of the first people that I saw when I walked in here when I came to sign a few days ago,” Adams said Tuesday. “And first thing I let him know, I said, man, you got to ease up on the test. That’s the first thing I said to him, and he started dying laughing.
“E.B. has a lot to do with who I am today, just from the mental aspect of approaching the game because, I mean, this man used to put together some of the most impossible wide receiver tests to pass ever. I mean it was almost like I was being set up. It wasn’t fun. But when I look back on it now, the way I look at the game, the way I can dissect the game, knowing coverages and things like that, E.B. had a lot to do with that. So, it’s a great feeling being able to get him back. He looks great, too. Lost a lot of weight. And so, I was happy for him. He’s a is a big piece of who I am.”
Adams was not an instant success in the NFL. Despite expectations that he would be a first-round pick, he slipped into the second round of the draft. Then his first couple seasons, he failed to surpass even the 500-yard threshold. Part of it was being bothered by injuries.
In his third season, he broke out. He caught 75 passes for 997 yards and 12 touchdowns. He had become the reliable target Aaron Rodgers needed in his offense. The following season – Edgar Bennett’s last as Packers OC – Adams made his first Pro Bowl.
The training wheels were officially off for Adams, and he hasn’t looked back. He’s now headed to five-straight Pro Bowls.
You can’t argue with the results Bennett has produced as a wide receivers coach. Made all the more amazing considering Bennett was a running back in his playing days and spent his first six years as a coach coaching running backs. Bennett aided in the development of Adams in such a way that Adams was able to continue on that progress they started early in his career.
It seems no coincidence, then, what we’ve seen the Raiders receivers accomplish over Bennett’s four years with the club. First in 2020 with Darren Waller setting a new franchise record for receptions (107) in a season. Then last season it was the signs of development from Henry Ruggs III in his second year prior to his arrest and release and Hunter Renfrow going on to put up over 1000 yards on 103 catches — just one shy of Tim Brown’s franchise record for wide receivers.
Adams said in his introductory press conference that the Raiders will have a ‘pick-your-poison’ situation with him, Waller and Renfrow. He’s right. And Edgar Bennett is the man behind that high-powered trio.
