Don’t let Packers DL Montravius Adams fool you into thinking he’s JUST a big, strong dude

After the release of Mike Daniels on the eve of training camp, Montravius Adams has a huge opportunity staring him right in the face. There is no reason why he shouldn’t be a starter this year, and it is time for him to make a big step forward in his development.

So far he has shown steady improvement every season. If he just continues to do that this year, and stays healthy, his numbers should really go up — especially his tackles, as he is excellent against the run.

Adams is 6’4 and over 300 pounds. He consistently does a great job of holding his ground at the line of scrimmage, whether he is single blocked or double-teamed. He not only is hard to move, but he also has the ability to play on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage because of his power and explosion.

Adams does a really good job of using his hands and getting full extension with his arms to keep blockers at bay. He doesn’t always escape cleanly off some of those blocks, but he just finds a way to make tackles when the ball comes his way.

He has some pass-rush ability about him too, and I really expect his pass-rush numbers to shoot up this year if he can nail down a starting spot. Truth is, he actually looks a little slimmed down this preseason. Perhaps he lost weight or toned up his body to try to help his quickness, which also should help him as a pass rusher.

It is easy to be fooled, as from his film it looks like some offensive linemen he faced last year were into believing Adams is just a power rush guy, since he is so big and strong. However, Adams knows how to work to an edge in tight spaces and he rarely stays down the middle of a blocker, even if he gets stuck there momentarily.

Because his feet stay active and his hands are always working, Adams maintains the ability to defeat the blocker on a second or third move after getting stoned initially, and still get to quarterbacks on those occasions when they have to hold on to the ball for a while.

Adams does have a bit of wiggle about him, and he isn’t afraid to use it.

In addition, Adams displayed some good footwork with his inside moves, and he is quick enough and strong enough to get into the inside gap without getting stoned or collapsed down inside. He also knows how to flip his hips to “get skinny” through the gap when he is making a finesse move.

One of his favorite moves appears to be a jab ole, where he mixes quickness with his footwork, and power with his big club to the offensive lineman’s shoulder. It was certainly effective on several occasions.

Of course, being a big, strong guy, Adams does have success with straight-up power rushes, as well. And that includes pushing the pocket back in the quarterback’s face and forcing him to Adams’ help outside. I know Adams only has 1.5 sacks in his first two years in the league and both of the sacks he was involved with came last season, but it is clear on film he has the skillset to make a much bigger contribution on passing downs this year.

If he stays healthy, I can definitely see him notching five or more sacks this year, which would be a huge jump for him.

For that matter, his tackle numbers this year should blow away the 20 tackles he had last season, too. With his hustle, his assisted tackles numbers should be through the roof.

Adams is off to a solid start in camp so far. He’s been in the starting lineup this preseason, and in the first game against the Texans I thought he did a lot of really good things. He had at least one pressure by my count, was active as a pass rusher, and was around the ball quite a bit, too. If he can just keep on building on that performance, I believe he will lock a starting job down before too long.

Even if he doesn’t start, I would expect Adams to really turn it up a notch this year on the field. He is going to be a difference maker no matter how much he plays each week.

Adams is just so talented that as long as he stays healthy he is going to make plays. He will be a major contributor to the Packers’ defense this year and his production should dwarf what he did his first two years combined.

Confidence level: High