University of Delaware Athletics
Former Delaware Standout Mike Adams to Play in NFL Pro Bowl Sunday in Arizona
1/21/2015 10:59:00 AM | Football
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Former University of Delaware football standout Mike Adams saw his dreams of appearing in a second straight Super Bowl dashed on Sunday when his Indianapolis Colts fell to the New England Patriots in the National Football League's AFC title game.
But that doesn't mean that Adams' 2014 season is over. The 11-year veteran will realize another dream as he was selected to play in the NFL Pro Bowl this Sunday, Jan. 25, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. The game will begin at 8 p.m. (ET) and be televised live on ESPN.
The Pro Bowl Draft will be broadcast live on NFL Network on Wednesday, January 21, at 8 p.m. (ET).
Adams, who earned all-conference honors during his standout Delaware career and was captain of the 2003 Delaware team that captured the NCAA Division Football Championship Subdivision national championship, will become just the second Blue Hen to appear in the Pro Bowl. Rich Gannon, who starred at quarterback for Delaware in 1983-85, played in the Pro Bowl four times for the Oakland Raiders and was selected as the game's Most Valuable Player in both 2000 and 2001.
Adams is one of four strong safeties in the Pro Bowl, joining Antoine Bethea of San Francisco, T.J. Ward of Denver, and Donte Whitner of Cleveland.
In his first season in Indianapolis this fall, Adams enjoyed an outstanding campaign. He started all 16 games, ranked third in the NFL with five interceptions, led the league with seven takeways, and ranked third on the team with 87 tackles. He played in 96.7 percent of his team's defensive snaps. During the 2013 season, Adams started at free safety for the Denver Broncos and led the team to a berth in the Super Bowl before falling to Seattle.
Another former Delaware standout - Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco - was also selected to play in the Pro Bowl but declined due to impending birth of his third child this month. Flacco, a seven-year NFL veteran, led the Ravens to the AFC playoffs this season before falling to New England in the second round.
