Seahawks safety Jamal Adams has waited too long to experience the NFL playoffs to let a shoulder injury to keep him out of Saturday's Wild Card game against the Rams.
Adams, who was acquired in an offseason trade after three seasons of losing records with the New York Jets, left last week's game with a shoulder injury, and Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said Tuesday that Adams would likely be a game-day decision. Adams, however, was completely unambiguous about his plans for this weekend.
"No question in my mind, I'm playing, man," Adams said prior to Wednesday's practice. "Look, as long as these legs are moving man, as long as my faith is with the man upstairs, which is very strong, I'm going to be out there. So there was never no doubt in my mind that I wasn't playing, so let's get that out there. I'm full-go."
Adams came out of the game after he was hit in the shoulder while blitzing—"Just a little lucky hit," he called it—and was sidelined the rest of the way aside from two plays in the fourth quarter. The TV broadcast repeatedly showed Adams looking dejected on the sideline after the injury, but he clarified that was more about the fact that he wasn't able to be on the field with his teammates—Carroll said they took Adams' helmet away to keep him from going back on the field—and not about the severity of the injury.
"When he took my helmet away, it hurt me a little bit because I wanted to be out there and finish no matter what, but at the end of the day, it's about the team," he said. "It's never going to be about me. I can't wait to get out there. I will figure it out, and that's just who I am as a person."
Adams has already dealt with an injury to his other shoulder this season, as well as multiple broken fingers, and he sees this injury as "just another challenge" he will play through on Saturday.
"I'm a savage, bro, I'm a warrior, man," he said. "It doesn't matter. Whatever it takes. It's not about me, it's always going to be bigger than me. It's about this team, it's about my brothers, it's about my family back home, my why. So again, I'm excited for this opportunity. It doesn't matter what obstacle was thrown my way, I always figure it out. And that's all that matters, man, so I'm looking forward to the matchup… I'm not going to be limited to anything. I'm full-go. I'm full energy. I'm me. I'm going out there to continue to make plays and continue to help the team win. That's what I'm about."
