Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams. Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Davante Adams hints he may have jumped the gun in requesting trade to Raiders

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 5/1/24

When the Green Bay Packers franchise-tagged Davante Adams during the 2022 offseason, the star wide receiver took a risk.

With then-Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers non-committal about his future and Adams unsure if he wanted to commit to Green Bay long-term, he requested a trade to the Las Vegas Raiders and promptly signed a five-year, $140 million deal.

And while the move has worked out for Adams thus far (he’s had back-to-back seasons with 100 or more catches and 1,000 or more yards), the wideout said on Maxx Crosby’s “The Rush Podcast” that after seeing what Jordan Love accomplished in 2023, he may have jumped the gun in wanting out of Green Bay.

“At the time when I was there, I hadn't seen enough [of Love] to say for sure ‘[staying with the Packers] is what I should do,’” Adams said. “In hindsight, like we talked about, [Love] is a [expletive] baller, man. I'm so happy for him.”

Love became just the fifth player in NFL history to throw for 4,000 or more yards and 30 or more touchdowns in his first full season as a starting QB.

He led the Packers to wins in six of their last eight regular-season games to earn a postseason berth, throwing 18 touchdowns and just one interception over that span.

Jordan Love's PFF Grade

Weeks 1-8: 65.4 (24th)
Rest of the season: 90.7 (1st)

pic.twitter.com/pCWWwShuH8
— PFF GB Packers (@PFF_Packers) February 2, 2024

Love ended the year with 4,159 yards, 32 touchdowns and 11 interceptions with a passer rating of 96.1, and he led the Packers to a 48-32 rout of the Dallas Cowboys during Super Wild Card Weekend, marking only the third playoff win Green Bay has had in the last seven seasons.

While Adams reiterated he doesn’t regret getting traded to Vegas, there’s little doubt a small part of him wonders what would’ve happened had he stayed in Green Bay and caught passes from Love.

“I want to tell him at some point ‘I definitely don't regret changing [teams], but I'm super proud of what you've done. If there was a way I could pull you over here and drag you with me that would have been cool too’ because we saw what he did at the end of the year,” Adams added. “I don't regret [my trade request], but at the same time, you look back on it like ‘damn that boy kind of balling right now.’”

More must-reads: