For many offensive linemen, getting out of football is the best thing for their bodies. We’ve seen ex-Steelers like Alan Faneca transform their bodies and drop a Biggest Loser amount of weight. Mike Adams appears to have done the same based on recent pictures he’s put up on his Instagram page.
Yesterday, I tweeted out a compare/contrast from then to now. The picture of Adams in a Steelers uniform came during his rookie year in 2012 while the Instagram ones were taken recently.
Obviously, we’re just looking at pictures and I don’t know much about what Adams is doing in his life’s work, but he seems happy and healthy. Back problems caused an early NFL exit and ended his Steelers’ career; he was waived/injured in May of 2016. He spent the rest of that year as a Chicago Bear before landing on injured reserve in December.
A 2nd round pick in 2012, Adams weighed in at 323 pounds at the NFL Combine. Clearly, he’s nowhere near that figure anymore and that’s probably a great thing for his short and long-term health.
Chris Hoke is another Steeler who lose a tremendous amount of weight when his playing days ended. Check out what he looks like today. League-wide, another recent example is former Carolina Panthers tackle Jordan Gross, featured here. He told Sports Illustrated in just a six month span after retiring, his weight went from 305 to 235 pounds, a 70 pound difference. If I had to guess, Adams is in a similar position. Linemen play at that weight because they have to, not because they want to, loading up on calories every day just to maintain, even if it’s a killer on the joints.
While Adams’ football career didn’t work out, it’s at least nice to see him appearing to thrive after it while staying near the city that drafted him.
