Two and half years in the past, the Las Vegas Raiders traded for Davante Adams. It was a giant day. There may need been balloons. They gave up a first- and a second-round decide to get one of many elite receivers within the league, and a few members of the media obtained fairly enthusiastic about it.
However the Raiders by no means even sniffed the playoffs, not to mention the Tremendous Bowl, and dangerous choices and a normal lack of success chipped away on the relationship to the purpose the place Adams has more than likely performed his final sport for the Silver and Black.
In response to a league supply, Adams requested a commerce on Monday, sooner or later after the Raiders beat the Cleveland Browns with out him. Adams was out with a hamstring harm, however apparently his emotions have been damage when coach Antonio Pierce appreciated an Instagram publish insinuating Adams is likely to be traded. Pierce hasn’t mentioned whether or not or not that was a mistake; he’s scheduled to talk to the media at 10 a.m. PT on Wednesday. However even when it was an accident, a commerce would repair an issue with Pierce that has been lingering since coaching camp — and with the group lengthy earlier than that.
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See, Adams and the Raiders have been by no means on the identical web page. That covers two front-office regimes and six beginning quarterbacks in Adams’ 37 video games with the franchise.
Adams signed off on the commerce to the Raiders partly as a result of he grew up a fan of the staff in East Palo Alto, Calif. — however principally as a result of he needed to play along with his good pal and faculty quarterback at Fresno State, Derek Carr. Common supervisor Dave Ziegler and coach Josh McDaniels not solely traded two premium picks for Adams however gave Carr a contract extension and signed free-agent move rusher Chandler Jones to sign they have been all in.
However … they weren’t. There have been holes on the roster, and Ziegler and McDaniels soured on Carr to the purpose the place they benched him for the final two video games of the 2022 season. They wound up slicing the franchise’s all-time chief in passing yards with out getting something in return.
Adams tried to say the suitable issues, however he began to lose his persistence when McDaniels introduced in Jimmy Garoppolo to be the beginning quarterback in 2023. Teammates have all the time beloved Garoppolo, however this model — the one who failed a bodily when he signed, wanted foot surgical procedure after which couldn’t ship correct passes — was arduous for the six-time Professional Bowl receiver to abdomen.
A loss to the Detroit Lions the day earlier than Halloween was the final straw for Adams, who slammed his helmet to the turf in the course of the sport, and, it turned out, for proprietor Mark Davis, who fired Ziegler and McDaniels the following day. Pierce, beforehand the linebackers coach, was promoted to interim head coach, and he instantly benched Garoppolo for rookie Aidan O’Connell.
Adams had a digital camera crew following him round final season for the Netflix documentary “Receiver,” and his competition on the present that he “signed off” on the Garoppolo benching irked some within the Raiders’ constructing. (He would use the identical phrase once more after Gardner Minshew II beat out O’Connell for the beginning quarterback job this August.) Adams and his members of the family additionally took some verbal photographs at Garoppolo on the present.
Some noticed Adams placing himself earlier than the staff at instances, and lots of teammates rolled their eyes at how he got here throughout on the present. There was numerous dramatic sulking and “me” speak as an alternative of “we” speak that didn’t go over properly when this system aired simply earlier than coaching camp this summer time.
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Adams had talked a couple of “recent slate” as just lately as July, however throughout coaching camp and the preseason, it felt like one thing was off. Adams left the staff throughout camp for the start of his first son, and whereas the staff thought it could be only for a few days, Adams was gone for 10. Then when he got here again, he mentioned he didn’t wish to play within the second preseason sport. (He hasn’t gotten his uniform soiled within the preseason since 2017.)
Pierce was instructed of Adams’ choice the following day and replied, “No, in the event you’re wholesome, you’ll play.”
Guess who got here up with an harm the following day?
Adams does have a reliable hamstring harm now and was unlikely to play Sunday in opposition to the Denver Broncos anyway. It’s unlucky that many on social media thought he was making a “enterprise resolution,” due to feedback Pierce made after an embarrassing Week 3 loss to the Carolina Panthers. The coach overtly questioned his gamers’ effort — a mistake, he later admitted. And whereas Adams didn’t play properly in that sport, totaling simply 4 receptions on 9 targets for 40 yards, it appeared Pierce was as an alternative referring to a number of defensive gamers (cornerback Jack Jones was benched for the primary quarter in opposition to the Browns).
To be clear, Pierce liking the Instagram publish was one other mistake. No matter his culpability or intent, that form of factor merely can’t occur. I can’t think about Andy Reid spending a lot of his free time on social media.
“It’s all the time some form of drama,” Adams mentioned on his weekly paid look on the “Up & Adams” present. “However, on the finish of the day, 17 doesn’t create any of it.”
3x All Professional WR Davante Adams addresses his HC Antonio Pierce liking a publish suggesting Adams shall be traded…
“I have never heard from him (Pierce)… I do not actually know precisely what that is all about.”@heykayadams @tae15adams @Raiders pic.twitter.com/xMusj9nMFx
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) October 1, 2024
The Raiders have certainly been a ridiculous telenovela for 20 years now, however Adams is not any harmless sufferer. He has talked about his frustrations and the potential of reuniting with former Inexperienced Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers commonly for 2 years now, and he could quickly get his likelihood if the New York Jets supply the Raiders a second- or third-round draft decide.
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However you’ll be able to’t actually blame him. The Raiders have been 6-11 in 2022 and 8-9 final season. This 12 months, 9 wins appear to be a best-case state of affairs after a measured free-agent strategy by new normal supervisor Tom Telesco and a few season-ending accidents on protection.
Adams has had sufficient. And whether or not they commerce him this week or nearer to the Nov. 5 commerce deadline, so have Pierce and the Raiders.
(Photograph: Ethan Miller / Getty Photographs)
