Packers: Rodgers Outcome May “Potentially” Affect Davante Adams’ Future

There is really no need to go into great detail about what losing Aaron Rodgers would mean for the Green Bay Packers. We are all well aware.

The hope would be that Jordan Love would step in and assume the starting role for the next 15 years—even if he’s not a Hall of Fame level player, which odds are he won’t be. Yet even if that were the case, and Love does provide that stability, before we get to that point there is likely going to be a steep learning curve, and as a team, Green Bay will take a few steps back.

Then there is the other side of that coin where Love isn’t the guy, and the Packers now struggle like so many other NFL teams to find their future quarterback as they enter a period of mediocrity that the franchise hasn’t seen in nearly 30 years.

To add even more salt to that wound, there is the very real possibility that where ever Rodgers potentially ends up, he continues having success, potentially leading his new team to that elusive second Super Bowl win.

As I said, we all know the above outcomes are possibilities, but another potential fallout from this situation is losing Davante Adams.

Adams is in the final year of his current deal, and up until about two weeks ago when the Rodgers’ news broke, it was assumed that Adams and the Green Bay Packers would agree to a contract extension at some point—and they absolutely still can.

However, when making an appearance on The Herd  on Monday afternoon, Adams was asked if Rodgers leaving would impact his future. He had this to say:

"Potentially. Potentially. That’s my guy,” said Adams via the Wisconsin State Journal. “Other than that 2017 season, when he got hurt, that’s the only guy that I’ve played with."

Other than a few injury stints here and there for Rodgers, he has been the only quarterback that Adams has known during his NFL career. And the two have formed quite the dynamic duo throughout the years.

Over the last three years specifically, Adams has caught nearly 70 percent of his 445 targets for 3,757 yards and 36 touchdowns. That culminated in a career year in 2020 when Adams led the NFL in yards per game with 98.1 along with 18 touchdowns, 1,374 yards, and was named a first-team All-Pro.

"“We’ve built up a special connection over the years that has put us both in really good positions in our career,” said Adams. “Not that he needed me to come along for it, because he was already in that spot, but we’ve established a lot together. So, it would change a lot. Doesn’t mean potentially I’d be gone, but I’d definitely have to do some extra thinking if my guy wasn’t here.”"

A special connection indeed—and that connection doesn’t only apply on the field, but the two have become close friends off of it as well.

Colin Cowherd — host of The Herd  — would follow up by asking if Adams was siding with Rodgers on this matter, to which Adams responded with:

"“I defend my guys on everything. We all know this is a pretty intense business, there’s a lot that happens, a lot that goes on here.” Adams would go on to say, “I can’t speak on specifics, but there are certain things that he wants, and maybe the club wasn’t so excited about living up to (them) right away. And that can affect a guy who’s done so much for an organization. He’s put his body and really laid his life on the line out there for that team, for his teammates. So I’ve been behind him 100% throughout the whole thing.”"

This season will be the final of Adams’ current four-year $58 million contract, and as we look ahead to what Adams could land on his next deal, Spotrac projects a new five-year contract worth $124.89 million with an average annual value of $24.98 million.

For the Green Bay Packers, it will still take some careful financial maneuvering on their part to make this work, given that they will still be under a cap crunch once again in 2022. But the hope is that we will see the cap take a big jump in 2023 when the new TV deal begins — which will certainly help — and with that said, for a player of Adams’ caliber, you simply find a way make it work.

In addition to keeping Adams in Green Bay beyond the 2021 season, an extension would also lower his $16.78 million cap hit this season as well—something that would help the Packers greatly as they still need to create cap space for their draft class, the practice squad, while still having space left over for any potential in-season spending.

Now, by no means should Adams’ comments be taken as, if Rodgers is gone, it’s a forgone conclusion that is he as well. But this is an added wrinkle to this situation to be mindful of, and as Adams stated, the outcome could “potentially” affect what he does.

However, Adams — like the rest of us — hopes it doesn’t come to that and wants the Packers and Rodgers to find common ground:

"“Obviously, I’m praying everything works out and we get him back and we can continue to go out there and continue to do stuff like we did (last season) because it’s a lot of fun doing that.”"

All quotes from Davante Adams’ interview via the Wisconsin State Journal