Davante Adams has worn No. 17 at each of his NFL stops. The three-time first-team Associated Press All-Pro recently signed in free agency with the Los Angeles Rams. He'll wear the same digits with his new team as the three before, despite that being Puka Nacua's number each of the past two seasons.
The Rams announced Tuesday that Nacua will switch to No. 12 for the 2025 season. According to ESPN's Sarah Barshop, the decision had nothing to do with Adams joining the team.
"Davante Adams said he did not ask Puka Nacua to change his number from 17 to 12," Barshop wrote Wednesday on X. "Adams said he thinks Nacua was already planning to make the switch before Adams signed."
On Tuesday, Rams senior staff writer Stu Jackson wrote on the team's website that the No. 12's significance relates to Nacua's family.
"Having watched my other siblings wear it, this is my opportunity to put on the special number 12," Nacua said.
Davante Adams explained that he had no part in Nacua's numerical modification
Davante Adams said he did not ask Puka Nacua to change his number from 17 to 12. Adams said he thinks Nacua was already planning to make the switch before Adams signed. pic.twitter.com/pprMzxyK6G
— Sarah Barshop (@sarahbarshop) March 13, 2025
"For everybody out there that wants to hate me for making them buy new jerseys, I did not tell him," Adams said. "I didn't pay him. I didn't do anything. That was out of the kindness of his heart and he wore it in college so I guess it made sense."
Fellow receiver Van Jefferson owned No. 12 when Nacua entered the league as a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Since 2011, Nick Miller, Case Keenum, Robert Woods, J.J. Koski, Baker Mayfield, and Nacua have worn No. 17 for the Rams.
Related: Davante Adams Reveals Unique Recruiting Tactic That Lured him to Rams
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This story was originally published March 15, 2025 at 5:00 AM.