Davante Adams is on the trade block.
There are multiple reports that the Las Vegas Raiders are seeking to trade the three-time All-Pro in addition to a report that Adams wants out. Add in head coach Antonio Pierce’s social media activity all but endorsing a trade, and Adams’ exit from Las Vegas seems inevitable.
It appears at this point that it’s just a matter of working out the details — the most important of which is finding a trade partner.
Adams, 31, is on the back slope of his career. But he was a first-team All-Pro just two seasons ago and managed 103 receptions for 1,144 yards and eight touchdowns last season while catching passes from Aidan O’Connell, Jimmy Garoppolo and Brian Hoyer.
There’s plenty left in the tank to make Adams a coveted target for a contender or a team with a strong young quarterback looking to upgrade its passing game. There are multiple teams early in the NFL season that fit that bill.
New York Jets
This one jumps off the page. Adams developed into one of the NFL’s best receivers in eight seasons of catching passes from Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. Rodgers is now quarterbacking a Jets team that through four games has fallen well short of expectations of an offensive breakout.
The Jets entered the season with Super Bowl hopes, but are 2-2 and coming off one of the worst losses of the NFL season — a 10-9 defeat to the Denver Broncos. The Jets scored three field goals and failed to find the end zone in Sunday’s loss. Alarms are blaring. This offense needs a boost.
Third-year pro Garrett Wilson is a stud, but so far has been limited to 191 yards and one touchdown through four games in a stagnant offense. Allen Lazard, who played with Rodgers in Green Bay, is New York’s leading receiver with 206 yards. Who better to add a jolt to the Jets attack than Rodgers’ all-time favorite target?
Dallas Cowboys
Cue up another team that’s raised early-season rumblings in the face of immense expectations. The Cowboys are 2-2 with an ugly loss to the New Orleans Saints and a less-than-inspiring win over the New York Giants.
Jerry Jones is already raising his hand to take the blame, and we haven’t even reached the crushing early-exit-in-the-playoffs portion of the calendar. Coming off a training camp holdout, All-Pro wideout CeeDee Lamb is off to a slow start after lighting the league on fire last season. His arrow’s pointing up after a big game in last week’s win over the Giants.
But a Cowboys offense that managed just 20 points against New York is not soothing concerns. And there’s no true No. 2 option on the wide receiver depth chart. Adding Adams would provide a bonafide threat opposite Lamb and allow Brandin Cooks and Jalen Tolbert to fall into more fitting supporting roles. It would also provide Jones with some cover on his commitment to go “all in.”
Buffalo Bills
Sunday’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens noted, this is not a team like the ones above that are falling short of expectations. Through three weeks, the Bills looked like the best team in the NFL with an explosive offense elevating quarterback Josh Allen near the top of the MVP conversation.
They lost big on the road against a desperate contender on Sunday. This happens in the NFL. We’re not selling our Bills stock. But we are acknowledging that they could use a boost on offense, most notably at wide receiver.
After the offseason trade of Stefon Diggs, third-year wideout Khalil Shakir sits atop the Bills’ depth chart. He’s had a fine season through four games. But as a fifth-round draft pick with a career high of 611 receiving yards last season, he does not fit the profile of a top target on a championship contender. Keon Coleman might some day, but that’s a lot to ask of a second-round rookie.
Of the Super Bowl hopefuls, the Bills entered the season with the most glaring hole at wide receiver. Adams would fill it nicely and immediately raise the profile of an already dangerous Buffalo offense.
Baltimore Ravens
Speaking of the Ravens. They’re still searching for the first Pro Bowl receiver of the Lamar Jackson era. In fact, they’re still in search of the first Pro Bowl receiver in franchise history.
That’s just how good Jackson is. Jackson’s made three Pro Bowls and won two league MVPs without the benefit of an upper-tier receiver. It’s not for a lack of trying.
The Ravens have spent three first-round draft picks since 2019 selecting Marquise Brown, Rashod Bateman and Zay Flowers. Brown’s no longer with the team. Bateman (144 yards in four games) and Flowers (158 yards in four games) don’t look remotely close to making their Pro Bowl turn.
The Ravens are perennial contenders but have yet to advance to the Super Bowl during the Jackson era. Let’s see what Jackson can do with a top-end receiver at his disposal.
Washington Commanders
Here’s a team that didn’t enter the season with playoff expectations, much less Super Bowl hopes. While the latter remains far-fetched — for now, at least — rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels is emphatically changing the narrative.
Thanks to some jaw-dropping throws and stat lines to match, Daniels looks legitimately like the long-sought answer at quarterback in Washington after decades of Dan Snyder-inspired swings and misses. This dude is the real deal, and the Commanders have a 3-1 start to show for it.
Terry McLaurin is on the verge of a star turn playing with Daniels, but there’s little experience of note behind him on Washington’s depth chart. What neutral observer wouldn’t want to see what Daniels can do — and how far he can take the Commanders — with a bonafide All-Pro on his side?
Pittsburgh Steelers
Thanks in large part to myriad quarterback questions, the Steelers also entered the season with middling expectations. An injury to Russell Wilson and a 3-0 start behind Justin Fields and a shutdown defense has offered hope in Pittsburgh.
A loss on Sunday to the Indianapolis Colts dampened the early-season excitement. But a 3-1 start is far better than most in Pittsburgh would have hoped for. Now is the time to make a move.
Like the rest of the teams on this list, the wide receiver room in Pittsburgh is lacking. George Pickens (20 catches, 284 yards) is the unquestioned No. 1 option with no No. 2 in sight. No other Pittsburgh wide receiver has totaled double-digit receptions through the first four games of the season.
Adams would offer a dramatic upgrade to a Steelers team looking to capitalize on a surprisingly strong start to the season.
Dark horse: Kansas City Chiefs
After an injury to Rashee Rice, the Chiefs are the team on this list with the most glaring need at wide receiver. They’re also the least likely to strike a deal.
There’s no way the Raiders would consider helping their hated AFC West rivals and winners of three of the last five Super Bowls, right? Any team but the Chiefs would seem the most desirable option in Las Vegas.
The Raiders are reportedly seeking a second-round pick to headline a package to part with Adams. Would a Chiefs team seeking a three-peat be willing to overpay to the point that the Raiders couldn’t say no?
If Rice’s injury is season-ending, they’re desperate. Without Rice, rookie Xavier Worthy and Christian Watson would top the depth chart. And that doesn’t sound like the makeup of a Super Bowl winner, even with Patrick Mahomes throwing the ball.
