The past couple of years have not been fruitful for the Las Vegas Raiders nor Davante Adams as the two sides look to bring the franchise back to its former glory.
Adams returned to the West Coast to play for the team he grew up rooting for, but he has been unable to get them over the hump due to coaching and roster issues. However, owner Mark Davis cleaned house this offseason and hired head coach Antonio Pierce and general manager Dave Ziegler to run the organization.
With Pierce and Ziegler in place, there’s optimism that Las Vegas can finally string together a strong year. In the meantime, the rumor mill is running rampant about Adams’ future with the team. There have been several reports suggesting that Adams is unhappy with the Raiders and is being shopped around the league.
However, in an unprecedented statement, Adams’ agents came forth and emphatically shut down that their client is in any sort of trade discussions via Adam Schefter of ESPN:
Statement from Davante Adams’ agents Kenny Chapman and Frank Bauer regarding the recent trade talk surrounding their client: “This is baseless, unfounded speculation and Davante is expected to be with the Raiders as there has been absolutely no trade talk – period.” pic.twitter.com/wwJ8AOtHEt
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 16, 2024
Rumors hit their apex last week when New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers said he couldn’t wait to play with Adams again. New York has reportedly been angling to pry Adams away from Las Vegas since they signed Rodgers, but the latter has rebuffed them at every turn.
Even Adams has publicly said that he wants to stay with the Raiders despite their shortcomings, which should have been enough evidence that he hasn’t demanded a trade. Regardless, Adams’ desire to stay with the silver and black will continue to come into question if the team doesn’t find a way to win games.
Getting to the playoffs will be an uphill climb, considering the strength of their division and the rest of the AFC, but a motivated and bought-in Adams could be enough of a difference to get them there.
Davante Adams signed off on Raiders benching Jimmy Garoppolo
Adams was visibly frustrated on the field often during the 2023 season as he routinely got open but didn’t get quality targets. It was later revealed that Adams actually signed off on Pierce benching Jimmy Garoppolo for the rest of the regular season.
