After months of denials no one seemed to believe, the Raiders and WR Davante Adams seem to have recognized a trade is the best path forward for both parties. Better late than never I guess.
The Raiders have had no shortage of opportunities to trade Adams for literally years at this point — and had they pulled the trigger sooner they likely would have gotten more than what they will eventually get in the coming weeks. Still, there should be plenty of demand for Adams. He’s one of the biggest names in the sport and even at the age of 31 has remained productive and dangerous. With offenses struggling league-wide, there will be significant interest from teams looking to give their units a boost.
Now the big question is where Adams will end up? There’s the obvious reunion with former QB Aaron Rodgers and plenty of other ex-Packers with the Jets in New York. But they’re not the only team interested — and they’re not the only team Adams is interested in playing for. Just like with any other blockbuster trade situation, there are tons of moving parts to work through before a deal can be reached.
So here’s a deep dive into all of it, including the logistics of trade compensation, the contract details that will dictate how this saga unfolds and the 12 teams who could make a bid to win the Adams sweepstakes.
Trade Logistics
NFL contracts can be a dense and esoteric subject. But when it comes to trades, they’re an essential component of any deal. Teams aren’t just acquiring or shedding players, they’re acquiring or shedding contracts too, and that matters just as much, if not more, than what the on-field impact of a player could be.
In the case of Adams, his contract is a key reason why the Raiders have even elected to make him available. When Las Vegas initially acquired Adams in a trade with the Packers in 2022, they signed him to a new deal billed as a five-year, $140 million contract. In reality, $73.5 million of that amount was tucked into the final two years of the contract in 2025 and 2026 with no guarantees protecting it, meaning it was money Adams was 99 percent unlikely to ever see.
That makes 2024 a de facto contract year for Adams, with the Raiders facing a decision this offseason to either cut him or try to extend him at a lower cost. If the Raiders were a contending team, it probably would have been worth pushing that decision to the spring. But the Raiders are not a contending team, and they haven’t been since Adams’ arrival — which is a major source of the frustration between the two sides. Adams’ football mortality has weighed on him more and more the deeper he goes into his 30s without a Super Bowl ring.
Much of the problems have centered around quarterback instability, with Las Vegas going from Derek Carr to Jimmy Garoppolo to Aidan O’Connell to Gardner Minshew. The Raiders will likely go back to O’Connell before this season is done and then be searching for a new starter next offseason. With Adams’ future in Las Vegas shaky and the prospect of him walking out the door for nothing in return, it makes a ton of sense for the Raiders to shop him now for a pick or package of picks that could help them rebuild the roster in the future.
Adam Schefter reported the Raiders have started the bidding for Adams at a second-round pick, plus more. Based on some of the past trades for aging superstar receivers we’ve seen, that makes sense. The Texans acquired WR Stefon Diggs this offseason for a second-round pick while getting back some later-round picks from Buffalo. The Titans gave up a second and a fourth for WR Julio Jones and a sixth in 2021, and the year before that the Cardinals acquired WR DeAndre Hopkins for a package including a second-round pick.
However, Arizona was later unable to trade Hopkins because of his significant salary and ended up cutting him last summer. Dallas got just a fifth and a swap of sixths for WR Amari Cooper because of a $20 million base salary the Browns agreed to take on. The Bears only gave up a fourth-round pick for WR Keenan Allen who was due a similar amount. Because of where things stand in the NFL calendar, with most teams having already spent the bulk of their cash budget and cap space, money will be a significant factor in any Adams trade — but not an insurmountable obstacle.
Adams entered this season with a $16.89 million base salary and up to $510,000 in per-game active roster bonuses ($30,000 per game). Players get a game check each week of the season (18 weeks) and four weeks are in the books, so Adams would cost around $13.5 million for a new team for the remainder of the season if a deal was done this week. Each week we get closer to the deadline, that figure will go down by $938,333, plus any potential game bonus.
There are just 11 teams right now that have enough cap space to take on that amount. However, cap space is fungible and there are ways for every team in the league to get involved in a deal for Adams if they’re motivated enough. They could work with Adams to renegotiate the deal, restructuring and adding void years to lower his 2024 cap hit to a little over $4 million.
The Raiders could also just eat part of Adams’ contract themselves. If they converted the maximum allowable amount of Adams’ salary to a signing bonus before a trade, that money would stay on their books. A new team could inherit Adams for as little as the veteran minimum of $1.21 million.
The Broncos did this with the Rams in 2021 to facilitate the trade of OLB Von Miller, and the Giants did it last year to trade DT Leonard Williams to the Seahawks. It improved the draft picks both teams got as a result. The Raiders should be highly motivated to do the same with Adams, especially if it gets them a second-round pick or more in a trade. At this point in their team-building life cycle, the picks are worth more to the Raiders than the cash or cap space.
There could still be financial hurdles to work through involving Adams, as he might see this as an opportunity to try and secure some long-term security with no contractual guarantees past this season. He might also welcome a chance at unrestricted free agency in 2025. That could impact the pick the Raiders get back either way. Most teams would be more reluctant to give up a second-round pick for a short-term rental of less than a season, while the more a team has to pay Adams, the less draft capital they’ll want to give up.
Then again, Adams is still playing at a high level, a lot of teams need help at receiver and there’s precedent because the Texans just gave up a second-round pick for 17 games plus the playoffs with Diggs. If the Raiders are willing to eat a bunch of cash to facilitate a trade, I feel optimistic about their chances of generating a bidding war and getting someone to meet their asking price.
Landing Spots
If we were to imagine a potential team interested in trading for Adams, the two biggest boxes to check would be a need for a major boost at wide receiver and a willingness to give up premium draft capital, let’s say at least a Day 2 pick. Available cap space is important, but if the Raiders eat cash as part of a deal, that becomes a non-issue. Adams doesn’t have a no-trade clause but he’s a big enough star that his buy-in will be an important part of any trade, especially with the cautionary tale of Jets DE Haason Reddick still prominently in the headlines.
Apply those filters to the other 31 teams and you get 12 that could be potential suitors for Adams. Some more likely than others…
Longshots
Patriots
New England has a huge need for a receiver — the Patriots have been involved with just about every big-name player available this offseason. Unfortunately, they’ve struck out, as receivers don’t see New England as a wideout-friendly landing spot at this current point in time. The Patriots have picks and cash to wield but I would be surprised if they pursued Adams as aggressively as they pursued others like Brandon Aiyuk or Calvin Ridley. I’d be equally surprised if, after two and a half years in Las Vegas, Adams was itching to go to another rebuilding team.
Eagles
Eagles GM Howie Roseman has a reputation for being involved in every trade, even if it’s just to check up on the price. However, I could see Philadelphia getting involved for more than just due diligence in this case. The team entered the season with questions about the depth at receiver behind A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, and both being out with injuries played a significant role in yet another blowout loss to the Buccaneers.
Both Brown and Smith have a good chance to be back after Philadelphia’s bye this week, and trading for Adams to be the No. 3 receiver would probably be overkill. I doubt the Eagles would want to pay full price to do that. But if the situation with Adams drags out and the market is softer than expected, adding Adams would improve the Eagles’ chances of winning the Super Bowl and ultimately that’s one of the biggest things Roseman cares about.
Chiefs
While salary might not be as big an obstacle as it’s being made out to be right now — Adams could cost as little as $1.2 million in the end — the biggest hangup here is Kansas City’s status as the top rival for the Raiders. Even if Adams is just a half-season rental, it’d be a bitter pill to swallow for the Raiders if it led to another Chiefs Super Bowl. The Chiefs are usually hesitant to part with premium draft picks as well, so my guess is they look elsewhere to solve the need at receiver that has cropped up due to injuries.
That said, Adams’ impact in Kansas City would be massive, and perhaps that causes the team to change up their approach a bit. They do have an extra third-round pick in 2025 thanks to trading away CB L’Jarius Sneed to the Titans.
Browns
If the Browns were interested in trading for Aiyuk in August, it stands to reason they’ll at least kick the tires on a deal for Adams. They probably won’t be willing to give up as much as they reportedly were for Aiyuk given Adams’ age and contract status, and that could put them behind other teams in the running. The team has other major needs besides receiver that could need addressing before the deadline, too, and draft picks will be even more important going forward for the Browns with how top-heavy their books are getting.
Cowboys
Dallas arguably should be more significant players for Adams than reports indicate they will be, as the Cowboys are supposedly out after an initial inquiry. Like they have all offseason, the Cowboys will cry poor and cite current and pending contracts for QB Dak Prescott, WR CeeDee Lamb and LB Micah Parsons. The better argument would be it doesn’t make sense to spend a premium pick to rent Adams when draft picks are crucial to their team building going forward with a top-heavy roster.
Still, there’s almost nothing on offense outside of Lamb, even accounting for TE Jake Ferguson as an ascending player. Adams would prevent opposing defenses from focusing all their attention on Lamb, and go a long way toward helping the offense get back on track in a key year for HC Mike McCarthy.
49ers
I doubt the 49ers will be serious players for Adams but they currently lead the NFL in cap space and are worth mentioning because of how hard injuries have hit the offense. San Francisco would also check a couple of major boxes for Adams, including a quality quarterback, contending team and the chance to remain on the West Coast. However, I don’t think the 49ers will view receiver as a big enough need to justify the cost to acquire Adams unless the price drops.
Sleeper Teams To Watch
Bills
Buffalo has fared well so far with its receiving corps by committee, but while there’s a benefit to spreading the ball around to prevent the defense from keying too much on one player, the lack of a true No. 1 option can be exposed by better defenses. It’s usually a good thing to have that one guy who will win his matchup more often than not, and Adams could be that for Buffalo.
Salary would be a huge consideration here, as the Bills have less than $4 million in cap space currently. The Raiders would have to eat close to the maximum of Adams’ salary to make this work, and as a result, the Bills would have to pay up in trade compensation. Las Vegas would likely seek one of Buffalo’s two second-round picks in 2025, one of which it got from trading away Diggs.
It’s fair to question if it makes sense to turn around and trade that pick to rent Adams for half a season when it could be used on a player who would contribute on a cheap rookie contract for four years. But if Adams is the missing piece to bring a Super Bowl to Buffalo, no one will care about the picks.
Commanders
Washington has been the biggest pleasant surprise of the early part of the season, racing out to a 3-1 start behind an incendiary performance from the offense and first-round QB Jayden Daniels. The Commanders have punted just one time in the last three games. Daniels is doing all of this despite a receiving corps that, outside of WR Terry McLaurin, is short on established options. The group includes 33-year-old TE Zach Ertz, third-round WR Luke McCaffrey and journeyman veteran WRs Olamide Zaccheaus and Noah Brown.
I don’t have to tell you that Adams would be a massive upgrade over that bunch, even if the Commanders are plugging along well without him so far. Washington was expected to be a rebuilding team this year but now they look like legitimate threats to win the NFC east. If the team believes the timeline is accelerated, going for a weapon like Adams to help supercharge Daniels’ growth could make some sense. The Commanders do have an extra third-round pick to work with in the 2025 draft.
It’s more likely that Commanders GM Adam Peters stays the course and uses those picks to build a young foundation around Daniels, but Washington is worth noting given it has the resources to land Adams and the need at receiver.
Lions
Detroit seems to be finding its stride on offense after consecutive seasons as a top-five unit, but if the Lions have a weakness on that side of the ball, it’s receiver. Former first-round WR Jameson Williams has found his stride and seems to be on his way to a breakout season, and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown remains a star. There’s mostly a hodgepodge of options behind those two, however. Detroit would face some challenges if Williams or St. Brown went down.
Even if they don’t, adding Adams would juice a contending roster even further. The Lions can easily afford Adams’ contract with the fourth-most cap space in the NFL currently. The draft pick would be a tougher sell, as the Lions are already down a third-round pick in 2025.
Ultimately, I’m not sure the cost-benefit analysis will push the Lions to pull the trigger on this deal. There’s a ton of overlap in roles between Adams and St. Brown, to say nothing of TE Sam LaPorta, and the unit is built around the run game anyway with RBs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs. The Williams breakout has alleviated a lot of preseason concerns about the offense. That said, there’s enough dots to connect to make the Lions a dark horse team to watch.
The Frontrunners
Jets
There’s been buzz about Adams reuniting with Rodgers almost from the moment the two sides parted, which is understandable given the huge numbers the two put up together. And in this case, it actually makes a great deal of football sense as well.
One of the issues with the Jets’ offense so far to start the 2024 season has been a lack of threats outside of WR Garrett Wilson. Another has been that Wilson doesn’t quite have the same mind meld with Rodgers that the veteran demands. It’s why veteran WR Allen Lazard went from being a healthy scratch last year without Rodgers to the Jets’ No. 2 receiver so far this year.
Acquiring Adams would address both issues, giving the Jets another dynamic weapon defenses have to account for and one who is on the same page with Rodgers. There could be some friction over target share but Adams could also potentially accelerate the learning process for Wilson and in the long term help his career. Everyone else in the Jets’ passing game — Lazard, WR Mike Williams, TE Tyler Conklin — would be pushed down a notch into role that better suits them.
Jets GM Joe Douglas usually drives a hard bargain but he and HC Robert Saleh are under a lot of pressure to win this year and a 2-2 start isn’t an inspiring beginning. The Jets have enough cap space as is right now to inherit Adams’ contract without the Raiders eating cash. They can free up even more cap and cash by ending the Reddick debacle, either by cutting him or trading him. New York has both Day 2 picks in 2026 tied up in the Reddick trade, but their second and third-rounders in 2025 are available to work with before the trade deadline, plus a 2025 third from the Lions.
Add it all up, and there’s a reason the Jets are the current consensus frontrunners from people inside the league right now.
Saints
The Jets may be frontrunners but there’s a couple other teams out there who can present viable alternatives, and at minimum will make it hard for New York to play too much hardball with Las Vegas. The Saints are another team worth watching. They rank high on Adams’ preferred destinations list largely due to the chance to reunite with another former quarterback of his, Carr.
New Orleans roared out of the gates to start the season before sputtering the past two weeks with close losses to the Eagles and Falcons. The offense has been good but HC Dennis Allen this week bemoaned a lack of other consistent weapons besides WR Chris Olave and RB Alvin Kamara. Third-year WR Rashid Shaheed has been an outstanding deep threat but more inconsistent as a down-to-down option. Do-everything weapon Taysom Hill can only take so many touches before breaking down, and there’s no one else who defenses have to gameplan for outside of that group.
Adams would provide a huge lift from the jump to that group, serving as a legitimate 1A to Olave’s 1B and pushing Shaheed to the No. 3 WR role where he’s better suited. He’d be able to rely on chemistry with Carr to ease the learning curve in the offense. The Saints should also be highly motivated buyers because this is a big season for the team brain trust after three straight years out of the playoffs.
“But how will the Saints afford Adams??”
It’s true New Orleans, per usual, is tight to the salary cap, with less than $3 million in available space right now per Over The Cap. They would need to max out all of their remaining restructures, including deals for players like Kamara they intentionally haven’t touched, to clear enough space to trade for Adams normally. But if the Raiders pay the bills, Adams becomes eminently affordable even for a team as cap-strapped as the Saints. At $1.21 million on the veteran minimum if the Raiders eat the max amount of salary, Adams is only marginally more expensive than the player the Saints would cut to make room on the roster.
The catch there would be the draft pick. The Saints have all their Day 1 and Day 2 picks for the next two years. They don’t have an extra third-round pick like the Jets do, but they have everything they need to put together a credible trade offer that in the end could be enough to do the trick.
Steelers
The Steelers have been looking for help at receiver for most of the offseason, and they nearly pulled off a blockbuster for Aiyuk from the 49ers in August. It’s no wonder they’re one of the other teams being linked heavily to Adams in the early days of this saga.
It’ll be interesting to see just how motivated Pittsburgh is to acquire Adams. Historically the Steelers have been content to cycle through draft picks at receiver with the rare second contract handed out. Trading a premium pick for a rental like Adams would be starkly out of character from past organizational precedent. However, Steelers GM Omar Khan has already shown a willingness to depart from some of the team’s past behavioral patterns, and Pittsburgh’s heavy interest in receivers this offseason is smoke that suggests a real fire.
Adams’ fit on the depth chart is easy to see. He’d probably step in as the No. 1 for the Steelers ahead of George Pickens (who would be one of the best No. 2 wideouts in the league) and allow Pittsburgh to stop relying on the platoon of Calvin Austin, Van Jefferson and Scotty Miller. Even though the Steelers are a run-first offense under OC Arthur Smith, having credible skill position threats on the perimeter is something Smith has put a high value on dating back to his time with the Falcons and Titans — even if it’s partially to serve as decoys to take attention away from the running game.
As far as assets, the Steelers have their full complement of Day 1 and Day 2 picks for the next two years. They’re down a fourth-round pick in 2025 for QB Justin Fields as things stand right now, but have an extra fifth from the Rams. Pittsburgh currently has about $10.5 million in salary cap space but also ample options for restructures to create space if the Raiders won’t eat cash.
In short, they are about as well equipped as any of the other frontrunners to make a play for Adams.
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