Chester Frank Adams (October 24, 1915 – October 27, 1990) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a tackle and

placekicker In gridiron football, the placekicker (PK), or simply kicker (K), is the player responsible for attempts at scoring Field goal (football), field goals and extra points. In most cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist ...

for 10 seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) and

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a major professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many ...

(AAFC), primarily with the

Cleveland Rams The Cleveland Rams were a professional American football team that played in Cleveland from 1936 to 1945. The Rams competed in the second American Football League (AFL) for the 1936 season and the National Football League (NFL) from 1937 to ...

and

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

. He was selected to the NFL's

All-Star game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...

twice. In 1978, he was inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame. Adams grew up in Cleveland and played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Ohio Bobcats The Ohio Bobcats are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I Intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio University, located in Athens, Ohio, United States. Ohio University is a charter member (1946 ...

. After graduating, he played four seasons for the

before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

forced the team to suspend operations in 1943. Adams was put out on loan to the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

, where he played for a year before joining the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

. When Adams returned from duty, the Rams had moved to Los Angeles, and he signed up to play for the

, a team under formation in the AAFC. The Rams sued to prevent him from playing for the Browns, but Adams won. He stayed with Cleveland between 1946 and 1948, a span during which the team won three AAFC championships. He was then traded to the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

, where he stayed for a year. He played for the NFL's

New York Yanks The New York Yanks were an American football team that played in the National Football League under that name in the 1950 and 1951 seasons. Season-by-season overview 1949 The team began in 1944 as the Boston Yanks, owned by Kate Smith's m ...

for a final year before retiring.

Early life and college

Adams was born in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

and attended the city's South High School. After graduating, he went to

Ohio University Ohio University (Ohio or OU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Athens, Ohio, United States. The university was first conceived in the 1787 contract between the United States Department of the Treasury#Re ...

Athens, Ohio Athens is a city in Athens County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 23,849 at the 2020 United States census. Located along the Hocking River within Appalachian Ohio about southeast of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, Athe ...

Football career

Adams was selected in 1939 by the

of the

(NFL) and played for the team until 1942. He was selected to play in the NFL's

in 1941 and 1942. Adams then played one season for the

on loan from the Rams after the Rams suspended operations during

. Adams joined the

in 1944 and served for 30 months until his discharge in the summer of 1946. Adams, who was a

as well as a guard, signed a contract to play for the Rams in 1946, but Rams owner

Dan Reeves Daniel Edward Reeves (January 19, 1944 – January 1, 2022) was an American professional football running back and coach in the National Football League (NFL). During his 38 years in the NFL, Reeves participated in nine Super Bowls, the third ...

moved the team to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

after the 1945 season. Adams refused to move to Los Angeles with the team, and the Rams sued him in federal court after he signed with the

, a team under formation in the new

(AAFC). Adams claimed that he had no obligation under his contract to play for the Rams because the team was described as the Cleveland Rams, and its name had changed to the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

following the move. The Rams filed an injunction in August 1946 to prevent him from playing for the Browns. Later that month, Adams testified before a federal court that he injured his leg in the

College All-Star Game The Chicago Charities College All-Star Game was a preseason American football game played from 1934 to 1976 between the National Football League (NFL) champions and a team of star college seniors from the previous year. It was also known as the ...

while playing for Green Bay in 1945 and was not, as the Rams claimed, a player of "unique ability".

Red Conkright William Franklin Conkright (April 17, 1914 – October 27, 1980), known more commonly by the nickname "Red", was an American football center and end who played eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and was later the head coach of ...

, a one-time Rams assistant who moved to the Browns' staff, testified that Adams was an "erratic" kicker and "at present a second-team player". At the end of the month, federal judge Emerich Freed denied the Rams' injunction, allowing Adams to play for the Browns. The judge rejected the Rams' contention that Adams had signed to play for Reeves, not a specific team. He ruled the Cleveland Rams had ceased to exist, and that Adams therefore had no obligation to fulfill a contract with the Los Angeles Rams. Four other former Rams players joined the Browns along with Adams: Tommy Colella, Don Greenwood,

Mike Scarry Michael Joseph "Mo" Scarry (February 1, 1920 – September 9, 2012) was an American football player and coach. He grew up in Pennsylvania, and played football in college at Waynesburg University, Waynesburg College in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania a ...

and Gaylon Smith. In the Browns' first season in 1946, Adams played on the line and shared kicking duties with

Lou Groza Louis Roy Groza (January 25, 1924 – November 29, 2000), nicknamed "the Toe", was an American professional American football, football Tackle (gridiron football position), offensive tackle and placekicker while playing his entire career for th ...

. In a 66–14 win that December over the AAFC's Brooklyn Dodgers, he scored a touchdown on a blocked punt and kicked five extra points. The Browns advanced to the AAFC championship that year, and Adams, who had played primarily at right defensive tackle, was asked to do the team's place-kicking after Groza suffered a sprained ankle in an earlier game. The Browns beat the Yankees 14–9 in the championship game. Adams continued to play as a defensive tackle and a backup to Groza in 1947. Then 32 years old, he suffered neck and back injuries in a game against Los Angeles. He re-injured his neck in the championship game, another win over the Yankees. Adams was part of a Cleveland team that won all of its games in 1948 and ended the season by beating the

for a third straight championship. The Browns traded Adams before the 1949 season to the Bills in a five-player deal. Cleveland coach

Paul Brown Paul Eugene Brown (September 7, 1908 – August 5, 1991) was an American American football, football coach and executive in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC), the National Football League (NFL), and the American Football League (AFL). ...

said the team needed to stay fresh after winning three championships. Adams played a year in Buffalo, mainly as a kicker. He then played a final year for the

of the

Later life and death

Adams was inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 1978. He died on October 27, 1990.

References

Bibliography

External links

Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Chet 1915 births 1990 deaths Players of American football from Cleveland American football offensive tackles United States Army personnel of World War II Ohio Bobcats football players Cleveland Rams players Green Bay Packers players Cleveland Browns (AAFC) players Buffalo Bills (AAFC) players New York Yanks players United States Army soldiers