Wide receiver Davante Adams remains committed to the Las Vegas Raiders, but he recently opened up about the intriguing trade rumors with the New York Jets that continue to circulate and a possible reunion with his former Green Bay Packers quarterback, Aaron Rodgers.
Appearing on Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay podcast, which dropped Wednesday, Adams emphasized his commitment to the Raiders, piggybacking off previous statements last week that he’s satisfied with head coach Antonio Pierce running the team full-time now.
“I’m actively on the Raiders. What do I look like sitting here talking to other people about being on another team? And that’s how I still feel about it right now,” Adams said. “I’m locked in with the Raiders, and I really feel good about this team, and as far as I know they feel good about me.
“If that ever changes, if that got to a point where they weren’t feeling the same way, I ain’t done playing, so obviously we would figure out whatever we needed to figure out.”
Rodgers might have lit the match to the simmering rumors, saying last week at a Lake Tahoe, Nevada, golf tournament: “I love Davante. Can’t wait to play with him -- again.” Then former Jets QB Boomer Esiason said on WFAN’s Boomer & Gio show that he was hearing an Adams trade to the Jets could be in the works this summer.
Adams’ agents issued a statement on Tuesday blasting any talk of the receiver being traded as “baseless, unfounded speculation,” shooting down the idea that there has even been any discussion between the teams toward that end.
Adams, 31, is entering Year 3 of his five-year, $140 million contract. Things haven’t gone completely smoothly in his Raiders tenure after being traded from Green Bay. His first QB reunion, with his college quarterback Derek Carr, lasted only one season in Las Vegas before Carr was released and signed with the Saints the following offseason.
With the Packers, Rodgers and Adams were an incredible duo for eight years. Adams admits that if the Raiders did want to move on from him, there’s one quarterback he’d want to land with. Yep, you guessed it.
“Well, I’ll answer it like this: If I’m gonna be reunited with anybody, it would be Aaron,” Adams told Sharpe, before adding that it’s not something he’s actively seeking right now.
The Raiders are expected to let 2023 fifth-rounder Aidan O'Connell and free-agent signee Gardner Minshew battle for the starting QB job in Vegas.
Adams and Rodgers connected for 669 receptions, 8,121 yards and 73 touchdowns in those eight seasons in Green Bay, so it wouldn’t be hard imagining what the pairing might be like the second time around.
“The thought of playing with Aaron is obviously amazing,” Adams said. “I already know what that’s like -- which is similar to why I came here and reunited with Derek, (it) was ’cause I had familiarity with him.
“Anytime you have that, it gives you a little bit more confidence than starting fresh with somebody you’ve never played with before, and it helps when they’re the best to ever play the game -- or at least that’s how I feel. I don’t know how you feel about that, but that’s certainly how I feel, and (Rodgers has) given me an opportunity to show the world what I can do.”