The biggest night of Davante Adams’ NFL career helped the Green Bay Packers advance to the NFC Championship Game on Sunday night at Lambeau Field.
Adams terrorized the Seattle Seahawks, catching eight of 11 targets for 160 yards, two touchdowns and a crucial third-down conversion late in the 28-23 victory.
It was one of the best games by a Packers receiver in playoff history.
Adams set a new franchise record for playoff receiving yards. He was also the first player in franchise history to produce 150 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in a playoff game.
Adams came up big early and late.
Aaron Rodgers found him twice on the opening drive for 34 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown on 3rd-and-7. It was set up with a beautiful route combination with Geronimo Allison and a double move by Adams, who fooled the secondary and got behind the coverage for the score.
On the Packers’ second scoring drive, Adams was the engine. He caught passes on three straight plays gaining 44 yards, and he drew an 18-yard pass interference penalty to get the Packers into the red zone.
Adams helped answer the Seahawks’ first touchdown of the second half with a 40-yard touchdown on an inside-out route. Rodgers and Adams both said the slightly-inaccurate throw forced Adams to stop before he got to the sideline, which freed up a cutback lane for him to run in for the score.
Rodgers and the Packers needed one more play from No. 17, and Adams produced it late.
On 3rd-and-8 and just over two minutes left, Adams won on a fade from the slot and made the over-the-shoulder catch for 32 huge yards. The play was designed for Adams, and Rodgers made a terrific throw. The conversion gave the Packers a new set of downs and helped the offense kill a big chunk of the clock before Jimmy Graham’s late catch sealed the win.
It could have gotten really tricky for the Packers had the offense punted the ball back to Russell Wilson and the Seahawks late.
Instead, the Packers escaped with their first playoff win since 2016.
Rodgers and the Packers offense needed a difference-maker in the passing game. Adams was that difference-maker. He was the best player on the field for the winning team on Sunday night.