Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers hails Davante Adams' route-running 'obsession'

'His mindset was to never be complacent'; watch Packers @ 49ers in NFC Championship game live on Sky Sports Action from 11pm on Sunday

Image: Davante Adams is hoping to reach the Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Davante Adams described his attention to route-running as an 'obsession' during the week.

It's something his quarterback Aaron Rodgers is no stranger to, having witnessed first-hand Adams' development since his days as a back-up to the likes of Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb.

Adams is now set to play a starring role as the Packers' undisputed no 1 receiver in Sunday's NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers.

Speaking earlier this week, Adams said: "I'd say obsession is a good word for it. I don't know at which point exactly it turned into that, but once I started realising I could lose people at the line of scrimmage and essentially run a route on air, I figured that that was the way to go.

"So I just put a lot into that and obviously I made it a big part of who I am as a football player."

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Watch highlights of the Packers' Divisional Round win over the Seattle Seahawks

Adams finished the regular season with 83 catches for 997 yards and five touchdowns, having played in just 12 games due to a toe injury.

Rodgers explained: "He's always had the ability to get his feet in the ground and separate. We saw it a few times in 2014 when we needed him to have a big game against squads that were taking away Jordy and Randall.

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"I think it was year after year, his mindset was to never be complacent and the way that he works in the offseason.

"I think really what's helped him, he has all these route running buddies who he'll take clips from and send them to other guys.

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"They're kind of always sharing release patterns and routes and it's college guys, it's pro guys, it's retired guys. It's a text thread that goes around where they share route running.

"I think it definitely helps because he's taking ideas from some of these guys and word is getting out about how talented he is at the line of scrimmage."

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The 27-year-old was outstanding in the Packers' Divisional Round win over the Seahawks, registering eight catches for 160 yards and two touchdowns.

That included a darting catch-and-run for a 40-yard touchdown, warranting recognition from Rodgers for the technical expertise behind Adams' route.

Adams got on the end of a Rodgers pass, then fooled the defense to run a further 20 yards

"It's the timing of when he takes his head back and the burst," added Rodgers.

"If you're able to have a camera on him and a camera on me, it would just tell you how perfect the timing on his part is. When I was ready to throw and had my feet set, he was coming out on the proper angle."

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This weekend could see Adams come up against veteran 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman, although Rodgers admitted the Packers will be prepared to shift their leading receiver across the field.

"We aren't exactly sure if they're going to move Sherman around, it seemed like they did that with (Adam) Thielen a little bit," said Rodgers.

"Their defense is so talented and savvy, it's not a super complex scheme where they're going to throw a number of crazy blitzes and coverages. They're so good on their base coverages, they're able to dominate at times just doing that.

"I don't know if they're going to move Sherman around, but we're for sure going to move Davante around."

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