He played two seasons of college football for the Fresno State Bulldogs and was named a second-team All-American in 2013 before being selected in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers.

Early in his career with the Packers, Adams was low in the wide receiver depth chart behind teammates Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb.

During his eight-year tenure with the Packers, Adams only missed 13 games, was named First-team All-Pro two times, and was selected to the Pro Bowl on five occasions.

After contract negotiations failed between the Packers and Adams during the 2022 offseason, he was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders for a first-round and second-round draft pick.

In his first season with the Raiders, Adams led the league in receiving touchdowns and was named to his sixth consecutive Pro Bowl.

[2] As a senior two-way starter for the Vikings football team, he led the school to a CIF state championship.

He had 64 receptions for 1,094 yards and 12 touchdowns, and as a cornerback on defense he totaled 44 tackles, including two for a loss, two forced fumbles, an interception, and four passes defended.

[23] On September 20, against the Boise State Broncos, he had 12 receptions for 110 yards and a touchdown in the 41–40 victory to give the Bulldogs a 3–0 record.

[29] On December 7, against the Utah State Aggies in the regular season finale, he had nine receptions for 168 yards and a touchdown in the MWC Championship Game.

[32] He set a Mountain West Conference record with his 24 touchdown receptions, eight more than any player in the country in 2013, and the total ranks fourth in single-season FBS history.

[38] After playing in the number four receiver slot in his NFL debut in the 2014 season against the Seattle Seahawks, Adams took 37 snaps in the second game against the New York Jets, where he had 5 catches for 50 yards.

[39][40][41] Entrenched as the Packers' number three receiver, on October 2, Adams scored his first NFL touchdown on an 11-yard pass from Aaron Rodgers in a 42–10 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.

[44] Though a distant third to Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb, Adams' 446 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns were a solid rookie contribution to the 12–4 Packers.

[45][46] On January 11, 2015, Adams set the Packers' rookie record for receiving yards in a playoff game with 117 in the victory over the Dallas Cowboys, including a 46-yard touchdown.

[65] Adams finished as the Packers' second-leading receiver with 997 yards on 75 catches for 12 touchdowns (as well as second in the NFL only to teammate Jordy Nelson).

[68][69] He added 76 yards in the division win over the Cowboys, and a touchdown in the NFC Championship loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

[74] The next week, he returned to record 7 receptions for 66 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game-winner with 11 seconds left against the Cowboys.

[90] After a Week 7 bye, Adams had his third consecutive 100-yard game with five receptions for 133 yards in a narrow 29–27 road loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

In Week 16 against the Jets, with the Packers eliminated from the playoffs, Adams had 11 receptions for 71 yards and caught the game-winning touchdown in overtime.

[98] Two weeks later against the Eagles, Adams recorded a career-high 180 yards receiving on 10 receptions, before exiting the game with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter with a turf toe injury.

Adams missed the next four games; he returned to the field during a Week 9 road loss of 26–11 to the Los Angeles Chargers, finishing with seven receptions for 41 yards.

In that game, Adams caught seven passes for 43 yards, along with his first touchdown of the season and a two-point conversion, accounting for all of the Packers' points in the 37–8 loss.

[105] In the next game against the Vikings on Monday Night Football, Adams caught 13 passes for 116 yards in a 23–10 road victory.

[108] In the Divisional Round against the Seahawks, Adams caught eight passes for a postseason-franchise record 160 yards and two touchdowns during the 28–23 victory.

[116] In Week 12 against the Bears, Adams recorded his 500th career catch on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers, becoming the fifth receiver in Packers history to reach that mark.

[122] Despite heavy snowfall, Adams caught 11 passes for 142 yards and three touchdowns in a 40–14 rout of the Titans on Sunday Night Football in Week 16.

[124] Adams had a historic season in 2020: he led the league in with 18 receiving touchdowns,[125] the most since Randy Moss had 23 in 2007,[126] and tying Sterling Sharpe's single-season franchise record (1994).

[132][133] In Week 5 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Adams secured a career-high 206 yards on 11 receptions alongside a touchdown in the 25–22 overtime win.

[146] Adams made his Raiders debut in Week 1 of the 2022 season against the Chargers, where he caught 10 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown in the 19–24 loss.

[175][176] In 2024, Adams starred in the Netflix original series Receiver, alongside Justin Jefferson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, George Kittle, and Deebo Samuel.