Mike Adams (born March 10, 1990) is an American former 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 an

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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). He played

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for the

Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...

, earning first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2010. Adams was considered to be one of the best

s of his draft class.

Early life

Adams attended Dublin Coffman High School in

Dublin, Ohio Dublin is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. A suburb of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus, it falls within the jurisdictions of Franklin County, Ohio, Franklin, Delaware County, Ohio, Delaware, Union County, Ohio, Union, and Madison County, Ohio, Madison ...

, where he was an All-State selection as a junior and senior. Regarded as a five-star recruit by '' Rivals.com'', Adams was listed as the No. 1 offensive tackle prospect in the class of 2008.

Professional career

2012 NFL draft

After Adams tested positive for drug use at the 2012

NFL Scouting Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Foot ...

the Pittsburgh Steelers initially removed him from their draft board. Determined to be selected by his favorite team, Adams met with head coach Mike Tomlin, general manager Kevin Colbert, and team owner Art Rooney II. After professing his love for the Steelers and willingness to rectify his mistake, Adams was reconsidered. He was selected in the second round (pick 56) of the

2012 NFL draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

by the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

Pittsburgh Steelers

On May 8, 2012, the Steelers signed Adams to a four-year, $3.54 million contract with a signing bonus of $1.01 million and $1.01 million guaranteed. Adams played in his first career game on September 9, 2012, against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

. On October 21, 2012, he received his first career start in a 24–17 victory over the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

. He then started the next 5 games. He finished his rookie season with 6 starts in 10 games. On September 8, 2013, Adams started the Steelers' season opener against the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. After four consecutive starts to begin the season, he was benched due to ineffective play. He finished his second season with 10 starts in 15 games. After beginning his third season as a back-up, Adams received his first start of the year on October 26, 2014, in a 51–34 win over the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

. He would not return to his starting role until Week 13. During his third season he started 4 times in 16 games. In early June 2015, Adams was placed on the PUP list before training camp in order to recuperate from a back surgery. On May 5, 2016, Adams was released after failing a physical, ending his tumultuous career with the team.

Chicago Bears

Adams signed with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

on August 10, 2016. He played in 12 games with one start in 2016 before suffering a back injury and was placed on injured reserve on December 12, 2016.

Personal life

Adams was stabbed in an apparent robbery attempt in the early morning hours of June 1, 2013 in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. He was hospitalized and made a full recovery.

References

External links

NFL Combine bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Mike 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Dublin, Ohio American football offensive tackles Ohio State Buckeyes football players Pittsburgh Steelers players Chicago Bears players