Rams Confirm They Discussed Trading Davante Adams

Rams HC Sean McVay confirmed at the NFL owners meetings on Monday that Los Angeles did have discussions about trading WR Davante Adams, as was reported earlier this month. 

Ultimately McVay says they didn’t think it was the best move for the team and nothing got too far along as far as negotiations, but he still wanted to be transparent with Adams. 

“We have discussions all the time. I wouldn’t say discussed — we really talked about some different avenues of onboarding other players and how it might affect Davante,” McVay said via Pro Football Talk. “I’ve talked with Davante about that, and if we felt like it was best for our team, we would’ve done that. But we didn’t think it was best for our team. So, excited about being able to move forward with him.

“I think one of the things that there’s a lot of narratives that are out there. What I do think is important is that we address the things that our players could potentially be affected with. And so, I believe in dealing with those things directly. He’s a grown man and he’s a great player. And so, at the end of the day, there’s a lot of different things that go on. We’re always looking at ways to upgrade our roster and feel like we can be as competitive as possible. There’s discussions, there’s dialogue — it never got to that. There’s scenarios that could’ve come up that we absolutely could have, and if we felt like it was best for our team, then it would’ve happened. But we didn’t.”

McVay shared a little bit about how the conversation went, though he obviously wasn’t keen on giving many specifics. 

He also revealed that some of his past regrets about how he handled prominent trades were a factor in his approach. He didn’t say QB Jared Goff specifically but that’s the most high-profile split between the Rams and a player during McVay’s tenure and it’s been well-covered how Goff felt like it wasn’t handled correctly. 

“Just straightforward. I said, ‘Hey, I’m not on social media, but if it’s been brought to my attention that there’s narratives out there, that there’s a possibility that you could’ve been traded, certainly I would imagine it’s come across your desk. Want to be able to give some truth to what the context was,’” McVay said. “And I don’t want to get too specific from what my conversation was with him. But, I addressed what those conversations were, even though they never really got too far. But I did want to acknowledge it, and then be able to tell him, the cool thing is, when you let the tape guide your decision-making and some of the other factors, the best thing is, I love him. But what I also have a responsibility to do is [make] decisions that are best for our football team. And the best part is, you get to have another year with a guy you really love as a human, and then it’s also what you also think is best for the football team.

“So, just wanted to address that because I just think about it, like if I was in that situation — and there’s a lot of stuff that’s out there that’s not accurate. But when there is at least some accuracy or some thought to it, you want to deal with that direct, honest, and open. And there’s been some instances where I wasn’t as good about that in previous years. And so I don’t want to make those same mistakes. And he’s a grown man, and I think he understood that this is a part of this business. But I think what he also understood is, at the end of the day, you’re a Ram because this is what’s best. And I’m excited to move forward with him.”

Adams, 33, is a former second-round pick out of Fresno State by the Packers in the 2014 NFL Draft. He was in the final year of a four-year, $3.933 million rookie contract when the Packers signed him to a four-year extension worth $58 million.

Adams made a base salary of $12 million for the 2021 season and was set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2022 when the Packers used the franchise tag on him at a figure of $20.2 million. He was then traded to the Raiders for a first and second-round draft pick in 2022.

The Raiders also signed Adams to a five-year, $140 million contract as a part of the trade, including nearly $66 million guaranteed. Adams was in the third year of that deal when the Raiders traded him to the Jets during the 2024 season for a third-round pick.

Adams was due base salaries of $35.64 million over the next two seasons when the Jets released him this past offseason. He then signed a two-year, $44 million deal with the Rams ahead of the 2025 season.

In 2025, Adams appeared in 14 games for the Rams and caught 60 of 114 targets for 789 yards (13.2 YPC) and 14 touchdowns. 

We’ll have more on Adams and the Rams as the news is available.