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When Davante Adams was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders, expectations were the highest they’ve been for the team in a long time. A team that made the playoffs the previous season added the best wide receiver in the NFL and was hoping to take a leap. Instead, the Raiders were one of the worst teams in the league and finished with a 6-11 record.
Quarterback Derek Carr was a big reason why Adams forced a trade to Las Vegas but he was benched with two games left in the season and eventually released. He’ll now have Jimmy Garoppolo throwing him the ball. Adams is 30 now and only has so many years left of playing at an elite level. Many believe the Raiders are rebuilding but that’s not something the star wide receiver has the patience for.
He has said that the front office has kept him in the loop regarding roster moves but that hasn’t always agreed with their decisions. In a recent interview with The Ringer, Adams got brutally honest about how he feels about the current situation.
“[The front office] think this is the best bet for us right now to put us in a position to be urgent,” he says. “We don’t see eye-to-eye on what we think is best for us right now.”
Should These Comments Concern the Raiders?
Even though Adams grew up a Raiders fan, it’s hard to imagine he would’ve wanted to get traded to the team if he knew this was how everything was going down. However, he made his bed and now is going to have to lie in it. He’s well aware of that, which is why he hasn’t requested a trade. Adams holds a dead cap hit of $54.3 million. That makes it nearly impossible for them to trade him right now.
It’s not a great sign that the Raiders’ best player is clearly not thrilled with the current team. He was sold a bill of goods that didn’t end up being accurate. The Raiders aren’t competing for a Super Bowl this season with or without Adams so general manager Dave Ziegler isn’t staying awake at night thinking about how to keep the wide receiver happy. Adams also isn’t the type to stir up a bunch of drama. He’ll put in the work but if the Raiders are really bad in 2023, things could get dicey next offseason.
How Raiders Can Get Adams to Buy In
Adams is the face of the franchise and the biggest name on the Raiders. Even if the team doesn’t expect to be good in 2023, they have to at least attempt to put together a winning team. Many believe the Raiders are rebuilding and Adams’ comments suggest that he also believes. However, it’s difficult to see a scenario where Las Vegas is worse than last year if they remain healthy. Garoppolo is not an upgrade over Carr from a talent perspective but he’s a much better fit under head coach Josh McDaniels.
Losing Darren Waller is tough but they replaced him with rookie Michael Mayer, who could also be a better fit in this offense. The defense is a concern but it has been for every year. They added defensive end Tyree Wilson with the No. 7 pick and defensive coordinator Patrick Graham has a second year to teach his system. The defense could at least be a tad bit better. Opinions are very low on the Raiders right now but there is a path for them to be a better overall team this season and the offense should be top-10 in the NFL. The easiest way to get Adams to buy in is to start winning games. Many expected the Seattle Seahawks to be one of the worst teams in the NFL last season after making a major change at quarterback. It ended up working out in their favor and they made the playoffs. Nothing is impossible for the Raiders as they do have some of the best players in the NFL on their roster right now.
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