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Raiders trade All-Pro WR Davante Adams to Jets; Adams is reportedly restructuring the contract with New York

Vaseline October 15, 2024

The Las Vegas Raiders are trading All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams to the New York Jets, the team announced Tuesday.

The Jets return a conditional third-round draft pick who could become a second-round pick if he is a first- or second-team All-Pro this season or is on the active roster for the AFC Championship Game or Super Bowl.

ESPN reports that Adams restructured his contract after the deal to lower his salary cap hit to $3.21 million for the remainder of the season. According to Spotrac, Adam’s salary cap was previously $11.59 million. His restructured contract now has two remaining voidable years, and the two sides plan to discuss his long-term future in New York this offseason, the report said.

Adams also plans to make his Jets debut Sunday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to the report. Adams missed the last three Raiders games due to trade rumors as the team reported a hamstring injury.

This trade comes less than 12 hours after the Jets suffered an ugly 23-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Monday night. It was the team’s first game since the firing of head coach Robert Saleh, and the presence of new interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich, as well as new offensive signal caller Todd Downing, was not enough to keep the Jets from making costly mistakes.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers pointed out some of those mistakes, especially with his receiving corps, during a somber postgame press conference Monday night. From Jori Epstein of Yahoo Sports:

Rodgers led the callouts, noting that on his final throw, which was intercepted, his accuracy wasn’t the problem. He expected (Allen) Lazard along the seam and Mike Williams along the red line. He threw a no-look pass to Williams’ intended spot, and the receiver ran a cutback instead.

Quarterback left no doubt as to whether his receiver completed the intended route.

Rodgers believed this reflected why the Jets have lost three straight games by one score.

“You can literally go back to any of those games and look at the little details,” Rodgers said. “I also have my own criticism. But there are many possibilities if we all just do the little things, do the details.”

Adams reportedly arrived in New Jersey on Monday night to facilitate the trade, and there was a very familiar face waiting for him: Rodgers, who was Adams’ teammate for years with the Green Bay Packers. With the Jets’ offense struggling, the hope is that reuniting Rodgers with one of his most successful partners on the field will help unlock all the success the team believes is just beyond their reach.

The duo appeared together on “The Pat McAfee Show” Tuesday afternoon and talked about the business.

“We’re back, man, we’re back,” Adams said.

The trade ends a tenure of more than two seasons for Adams in Las Vegas.

The Raiders traded for Adams from the Packers during the 2022 offseason and then signed him to a five-year, $140 million contract with $65.7 million in guaranteed money. Las Vegas parted ways with a first- and second-round pick to acquire Adams, who had emerged as one of the NFL’s top receivers in eight seasons of catching passes from Rodgers.

The deal to Las Vegas reunited Adams with his college quarterback from Fresno State, Derek Carr. Adams was named first-team All-Pro for the third consecutive season in his first season with the Raiders. He tallied 100 catches for 1,516 yards and 14 touchdown receptions in the league. Carr made his first Pro Bowl since 2017 upon Adams’ arrival, but the Raiders finished 6-11. They benched Carr for the final two games of the season, avoiding an injury guarantee on his contract.

Since then, things have changed significantly in Las Vegas. The Raiders released Carr the following offseason and he signed with the New Orleans Saints. After a 3-5 start to the 2023 season, the Raiders fired head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager David Ziegler, who oversaw the deal to acquire Adams.

Antonio Pierce took over as interim coach and was hired full-time after leading the Raiders to a 5-4 finish. But the 2024 season is off to a tumultuous start, including a blowout loss at home to a Carolina Panthers team that just benched starting quarterback Bryce Young.

The Raiders benched journeyman quarterback Gardner Minshew II in favor of Aidan O’Connell two weeks ago, but results didn’t improve after a 32-13 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. They rank 27th in the league in total offensive numbers and are not close to contention at 2-4. Ultimately, they decided there was no point in selecting a 31-year-old, six-time Pro Bowl receiver better suited to help a team that is now primed to win.

The deal ends months of speculation that Adams was on the trade block. General manager Tom Telesco denied rumors in February that the Raiders were looking to trade Adams. The tone in Las Vegas changed when the Raiders got off to a bad start.

Pierce liked a Sports Illustrated report on social media in September that the Raiders were actively shopping Adams on the trade market. A day later, Adams said he had not heard from Pierce or anyone from the Raiders regarding trade rumors or Pierce’s social media activity.

It turns out the Raiders were indeed willing to make a deal.