_(cropped).jpg) Adams in 2017 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 11, 7 | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1950-03-19)March 19, 1950 (age 75) San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 198 lb (90 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Ramona (Riverside, California) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Utah State | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1973:14th round, 343rd overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Anthony Lee Adams (born March 9, 1950) is an American former professionalfootball player who was aquarterback in theNational Football League (NFL),World Football League (WFL), andCanadian Football League (CFL).
Adams playedcollege football atUtah State inLogan from1970 through1972.[1][2] Prior to that he'd been with theTexas Longhorns Football on their freshman team in 1968 and then at Riverside Community College in 1969. With the Aggies, he was the starting quarterback for three years, and the team had a record of 21 wins, 11 losses, and 1 tie. He didn't miss any games, playing in all 33 contests.
As a senior in1972, Adams set an NCAA record on November 11 with 561 net passing yards and five touchdowns in a 44–16 Aggie win over theUtah Utes.[3][4] The teams combined for an NCAA record 950 passing yards, and Adams' 561 yards stood for five years, until broken byBYU'sMarc Wilson in1977, also againstUtah.[5] The head coach that worked with Adams for all 3 seasons wasChuck Mills; Adams' number 11 jersey was retired by Utah State in 1972.
Adams' final game for Utah State was at home againstWeber State onThanksgiving. Seldom-injured, he left the game early in the first quarter with a lower leg injury,[6] hobbled around the sidelines, and changed into his street clothes at halftime. When the Aggies fell behind early in the fourth quarter, Adams got back in uniform and re-entered the game.[7]
| Year | Team | GP | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Utah State | 11 | 108 | 232 | 46.6 | 1,394 | 6 | 16 | 14 | 107.7 |
| 1971 | Utah State | 11 | 144 | 284 | 50.7 | 2,035 | 7.2 | 14 | 11 | 119.4 |
| 1972 | Utah State | 11 | 204 | 351 | 58.1 | 2,797 | 8 | 22 | 9 | 140.6 |
| Total | 33 | 456 | 867 | 52.6 | 6,226 | 7.2 | 52 | 34 | 124.9 | |
Adams was selected in the1973 NFL draft by theSan Diego Chargers in the14th round (343rd overall), but he never actually played for the team that drafted him.
His first actual professional season began with theHartford Knights of the Atlantic Coast Football League. He played with them in 1973, recording 10 passing touchdowns.[9]
Adams played with theSouthern California Sun in theWorld Football League (WFL) in1974, where he statistically had his best pro season, completing 276 of 510 passes for 3905 yards and 23TDs and 18interceptions. He was anAll-WFL selection that season. He was also named one of the WFL's Tri-MVP's during the 1974 season. He shared this award with Tommy Reamon of the Florida Blazers and J.J. Jennings of the Memphis Southmen. Adams led the Sun to a 13–7 record and the team won the 1974 WFL Western Division. They faced the Hawaiians in the opening round of the '74 WFL playoffs and fell by a score of 32–14.
After being released by the Southern California Sun on January 13, 1975, Adams was signed as afree agent on April 18 by theKansas City Chiefs.[10] He would spend four years with the Chiefs, during which he appeared in 50 games, 7 of them as the starting quarterback. He was never able to reach the success that he had in the WFL, winning only 1 of the 7 games that he started. He completed 163 of 319 passing attempts for 2,126 yards, 9 TDs, and 22 interceptions. Adams would no longer be a member of the Chiefs after the 1978 season.
Adams played 20 games over two seasons (1979–1980) for theToronto Argonauts of the CFL. His best year was 1979, when he completed 241 of 394 passes for 2,692 yards, with 13 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.
He finished his career as astrikereplacement player with theMinnesota Vikings in1987. By this time, Adams was already 37 years old, and this stint with the Vikings didn't do much to revive his career. This was the first playing time he saw since playing in his last season in the CFL in 1980. He started in all 3 games that he played in for the Vikings, losing all three of those games. He completed 49 of his 89 pass attempts for 607 yards while posting 3 touchdown passes and 5 interceptions.
| Year | Team | GP | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | SCS | 20 | 276 | 510 | 54 | 3,905 | 7.7 | 23 | 18 |
| Total | 20 | 276 | 510 | 54 | 3,905 | 7.7 | 23 | 18 | |
| Year | Team | GP | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | TOR | 16 | 241 | 394 | 61.2 | 2,692 | 6.8 | 13 | 18 | 73.5 |
| 1980 | TOR | 4 | 39 | 72 | 54.2 | 539 | 7.5 | 0 | 6 | 43.7 |
| Total | 20 | 280 | 466 | 60.1 | 3,231 | 6.9 | 13 | 24 | 68.9 | |
| Passing[12] | Rushing | Sacked | Fumbles | Team Record | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | GP | GS | Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Sack | Yds | Fum | Lost | W/L (as starter) |
| 1975 | KC | 6 | 2 | 36 | 77 | 46.8 | 445 | 5.8 | 2 | 4 | 52.1 | 8 | 42 | 5.3 | 0 | 11 | 85 | 4 | 4 | 0–2 |
| 1976 | KC | 14 | 0 | 36 | 71 | 50.7 | 575 | 8.1 | 3 | 4 | 68.7 | 5 | 46 | 9.2 | 0 | 9 | 79 | 1 | 0 | 0–0 |
| 1977 | KC | 14 | 3 | 47 | 92 | 51.1 | 691 | 7.5 | 2 | 11 | 43.6 | 5 | 21 | 4.2 | 0 | 18 | 136 | 1 | 1 | 1–2 |
| 1978 | KC | 16 | 2 | 44 | 79 | 55.7 | 415 | 5.3 | 2 | 3 | 63 | 9 | 15 | 1.7 | 0 | 3 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0–2 |
| 1987 | MIN | 3 | 3 | 49 | 89 | 55.1 | 607 | 6.8 | 3 | 5 | 64.2 | 11 | 31 | 2.8 | 0 | 18 | 120 | 3 | 3 | 0–3 |
| Total | 53 | 10 | 212 | 408 | 52 | 2,733 | 6.7 | 12 | 27 | 55.5 | 38 | 155 | 4.1 | 0 | 59 | 447 | 9 | 8 | 1–9 | |