Sam Adams is a career quality starter β a pass rusher whose body of work places Adams in the top quarter of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Adams's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
Sam Adams
Height6'3"
Weight350 lb
BornJun 13, 1973
Age53
CollegeTexas A&MSee College Stats
Rookie yr1994
Draft1994 Β· Rd 1, Pick 8 Β· SEA
All-Time Rank & Honors
career ranks, postseason ranks, awards, title context3x
Pro Bowls
2
Title Seasons
6
Dynasty Seasons
A high-end edge rusher defined as much by excellent availability over their career as by their on-field impact (top 20% all-time). Coaches and teammates could count on them being available.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 155 Β· #605 Β· High-ValueWorth 155 points of value above a freely-available replacement interior lineman β top 14% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 12 of 14 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +12.9 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
12 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
47
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
12
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+12.9
Avg surplus
peak +25
12 seasons Γ ~12.9 surplus β VORP 155
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
1 grid split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1994 | β | SEA | 12 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 4.0 | 4.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1995 | β | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 3.5 | 3.5 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1996 | β | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 5.5 | 5.5 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1997 | β | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 7.0 | 7.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1998 | β | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1999 | β | SEA | 9 | β | 26 | 20 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2000 | β | BAL | 13 | β | 24 | 20 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 2.0 | 11.0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2001 | β | BAL | 11 | β | 17 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2.0 | 6.0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | β | LV | 13 | β | 18 | 14 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2.0 | 9.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | β | BUF | 12 | β | 23 | 14 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2004 | β | BUF | 14 | β | 36 | 22 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2005 | β | BUF | 11 | β | 13 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | β | CIN | 10 | β | 13 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | β | DEN | 7 | β | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| Career | β | 176 | β | 178 | 124 | 54 | 23 | 8 | 44.0 | 75.0 | 2 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
Defense
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 21 | SEA | 12 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 4.0 | 4.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 9 |
| 1995 | 22 | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 3.5 | 3.5 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 8.7 |
| 1996 | 23 | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 5.5 | 5.5 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 12 |
| 1997 | 24 | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 7.0 | 7.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 13.1 |
| 1998 | 25 | SEA | 16 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 7.4 |
| 1999 | 26 | SEA | 9 | β | 26 | 20 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 1.0 | 10.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5.3 |
| 2000 | 27 | BAL | 13 | β | 24 | 20 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 2.0 | 11.0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.7 |
| 2001 | 28 | BAL | 11 | β | 17 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2.0 | 6.0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | β | 0 | 0 | 5.8 |
| 2002 | 29 | LV | 13 | β | 18 | 14 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2.0 | 9.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 6.6 |
| 2003 | 30 | BUF | 12 | β | 23 | 14 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9.6 |
| 2004 | 31 | BUF | 14 | β | 36 | 22 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 9.5 |
| 2005 | 32 | BUF | 11 | β | 13 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 6.5 |
| 2006 | 33 | CIN | 10 | β | 13 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2.0 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 5.3 |
| 2007 | 34 | DEN | 7 | β | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 2.5 |
| Career | 176 | 178 | 124 | 54 | 23 | 8 | β | β | 2 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 108 |
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 66 Β· Strong StarterA strong starter career by KV-H: a peak-driven profile that scores 66 of 100, era-normalized against sacks/g peers across 14 scored seasons.
59
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
69
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ1
Longevity
career length
Blend 63 Γ longevity 1 = KV-H 66Β· confidence 99%
What builds the career mark of 59
On-field 42.5
Availability 16.5
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative sacks/g)
1994bestavg 57elite 702007
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position20
Depth
of 100
Reached 22% of the all-time Sacks leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
22% of the all-time Sacks leader22
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 85%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average defensive linemen aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
Postseason Career
8 playoff gamesDefense
Tkl12Solo8Ast4TFL5QBHits2Sk2.0Dis9.0PD3FR1
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Texas A&M), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
Mack StrongFB6yJay BellamyDB6yCortez KennedyDT6yMichael SinclairDE6yJoey GallowayWR5yBrian BladesWR5yChristian FauriaTE5yMichael McCraryDE5yDean WellsLB5yJames McKnightWR5yCarlester CrumplerTE5yPhillip DanielsDE4yChris WarrenRB4yDarryl WilliamsDB4yJon KitnaQB4yFred ThomasCB4ySteve BroussardRB4yLamar SmithRB4yMike PritchardWR4yAntonio EdwardsDE4yJohn FrieszQB4yLondon FletcherILB3yRod WoodsonFS3yLawyer MilloyS3y
1994 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #8
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterSam inherited the Seattle Seahawks DL room from Antonio Edwards (1993β1997), and handed it to Phillip Daniels (1996β1999).
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 2007team change
Joined DEN (from CIN)
- 2007final season
Last recorded season with DEN
- 2006team change
Joined CIN (from BUF)
- 2003team change
Joined BUF (from LV)
- 2002team change
Joined LV (from BAL)
- 2000team change
Joined BAL (from SEA)
- 1994draft
Drafted by SEA β Round 1, Pick 8
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts6'3" / 350 lb
Frame
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Historical Knox Β· KV-H
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 14-season peers. See all β
66
peak 69
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
B1994
B1995
B1996
B+1997
C+1998
C1999
C+2000
C+2001
C+2002
B2003
B2004
C+2005
C+2006
D2007
Era Translator
Sacks translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Sacks | Sacks/G | β 2025 Sacks | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 4 | 0.3 | 5+1 | 0.3 |
| 1995 | 3.5 | 0.2 | 4+0.5 | 0.2 |
| 1996 | 5.5 | 0.3 | 5-0.5 | 0.3 |
| 1997 | 7 | 0.4 | 7 | 0.4 |
| 1998 | 2 | 0.1 | 2 | 0.1 |
| 1999 | 1 | 0.1 | 2+1 | 0.1 |
| 2000 | 2 | 0.2 | 2 | 0.1 |
| 2001 | 2 | 0.2 | 3+1 | 0.2 |
| 2002 | 2 | 0.2 | 2 | 0.1 |
| 2003 | 5 | 0.4 | 7+2 | 0.4 |
| 2004 | 5 | 0.4 | 6+1 | 0.3 |
| 2005 | 3 | 0.3 | 4+1 | 0.3 |
| 2006 | 2 | 0.2 | 3+1 | 0.2 |
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:draft_picks, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (facts-only reference), nfl.com:official-stats (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
155 career value over replacement β #605 all-time of 4,642. 11.1/season above a replacement-level DL.
Draft OutcomeValue β
Pick #8 (Rd 1) Β· SEA Β· 1994 Β· +5.6 vs expected KV-H
66actual
60.4 expected Β· Ξ+5.6
Fan Rating
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