Davante Adams Shuts Down Trade Rumors: ‘This Is Where I Want To Be’

Davante Adams signed a five-year $140 million contract with the Las Vegas Raiders after he was traded from the Green Bay Packers in 2022. Yet still, due to the team’s combined 14-20 regular season record in the past two years, his name has remained in many trade rumors and speculation.

In February, Las Vegas Raiders General Manager Tom Telesco said that Adams “is a Raider” and wouldn’t be traded. Most recently, Adams echoed those thoughts as he spoke to reporters at his football camp.

“If I wanted to be gone, I’d be gone by now,” Adams said. “This is where I want to be.”

Much speculation about Adam’s future in Las Vegas came from his discontent with the team’s previous head coach, Josh McDaniels. McDaniels led the team to a 6-11 record in 2022 and a 3-5 record in 2023 before being dismissed by the organization halfway through the year.

After his departure, the Raiders introduced Antonio Pierce as interim head coach, whom Adams strongly advocated for. With Pierce now the team’s head coach, Adams seems much more confident in the team and his future with them.

“It’s already helped the morale of the team. It’s what we were all looking for To be able to continue with the same mindset that we had. That’s our guy,” the six-time Pro-Bowler in Adams said.

Before arriving with the Raiders in 2022, the 31-year-old spent the previous eight years of his career in Green Bay with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, making the playoffs in six of those years and the NFC Championship game four times. On the other hand, Las Vegas has only made the playoffs once in the past seven years, but Adams joined the team looking for a new start, knowing playoff success still needs to be guaranteed.

Despite the team’s poor performance with McDaniels at the helm, Adams has continued his All-Pro level receiving performances. In 2022, he had 100 catches for 1,516 yards and a league-high 14 receiving touchdowns. In 2023, Adams had a similar year, finishing with 103 catches for 1,144 yards and eight touchdowns. Besides the coaching change, Adam’s numbers are even more impressive, considering Las Vegas brought in rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connellmidway through the season.

Along with Adams, Las Vegas has Jakobi Meyers and Tre Tucker in their receiver room but little to no depth after their starters. It will be another challenging year for the Raiders with a second-year quarterback in a division with the reigning Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs; if Adams can keep up the output of the past few years, it could prove well for the team.

Article by Eli Gregorski