Packers Get 1st & 2nd Round Picks in Davante Adams Trade to Raiders
By Paul Bretl
Wow. The Green Bay Packers are trading star wide receiver Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders.
According to Ian Rapoport, the Packers will be sending Adams to Las Vegas, where he will be made the highest-paid receiver in football, earning $28.5 million per year on a five-year deal worth $141.25 million. In return, Green Bay will receive the Raiders’ first (No. 22) and second-round (No. 53) picks in this year’s draft.
Just last week, the Green Bay Packers placed the franchise tag on Davante Adams, which came with a cap hit in 2022 of $20.1 million. It was also reported that the two sides weren’t particularly close in negotiations.
So I imagine many initially thought that this trade had to do with the salary cap or the Packers’ unwillingness to make Adams the highest-paid receiver in football. However, according to Rob Demovsky, that wasn’t the case.
Demovsky would report that the Packers matched the Raiders’ offer, but Adams wanted to play elsewhere and will be heading to Las Vegas to team up with his former college quarterback, Derek Carr. Demovsky would also add that Aaron Rodgers was aware of the developments.
Receiver was already a big need for the Green Bay Packers, but now it is a massive one. The only receivers under contract at the moment are Randall Cobb, Amari Rodgers, Allen Lazard, Juwann Winfree, Chris Blair, and Rico Gafford.
But with Adams now off the books, the Packers have an additional $20.1 million in cap space to utilize this offseason and also those two additional draft picks from Las Vegas to spend on the position as well.
I was always of the mindset that even if the two sides were far off in negotiations, eventually, they would come to an agreement. However, what I did not account for was Adams looking to join the Raiders, even with Rodgers back under center.