Jets' Davante Adams hints that his future with the team is tied to Aaron Rodgers
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Aaron Rodgers isn’t the only high-profile Jet whose future with the team is uncertain. That goes for Davante Adams, too, and his future is tied to Rodgers.
“For sure,” Adams said Monday after cleaning out his locker. “I don’t know what his plans are yet and where that’s headed. I would imagine that would have something to do with it.”
Adams didn’t sound overly willing to play for the Jets if Rodgers is gone.
“Potentially,” he said. “Potentially. It just would have to depend on everything.”
Rodgers and Adams being somewhat of a package deal isn’t shocking. Adams pushed for a trade from Las Vegas to the Jets in October to reunite with his old Packers teammate. The pair thought they would win together again, but that didn’t happen.
Adams caught 67 passes for 854 yards and seven touchdowns in 11 games as a Jet. They went 3-8.
It was a disappointing season all the way around for the Jets, who finished 5-12 and are facing an offseason of massive change. They’re in the market for a new general manager and coach, and perhaps a new quarterback.
Rodgers was acquired before the 2023 season to help lead the Jets to the postseason, and possibly a Super Bowl. It’s been more of the same, though.
The Jets have missed the playoffs for 14 consecutive years, and now the Rodgers era could be over. That likely will be for the Jets’ new regime to decide, provided the 41-year-old Rodgers wants to play football in 2025.
“I just need to get away and then also see what they’re into and what they’re thinking, and then take some time for myself,” Rodgers said.
Adams’ cap number next season is $38.3 million, but it’s not guaranteed. He would have to take a pay cut, in addition to possibly playing without Rodgers, to return to the Jets.
“Honestly, I truly have no idea,” Adams said about his future plans. “I’m trying to take a little bit of time right now and reassess and see how I’m feeling, see what the team is feeling, and have a few conversations and hopefully come up with a plan moving forward.”
If Adams doesn’t want to stay, the Jets would clear nearly $30 million by releasing him. Adams has never been a free agent before.
“I came here in hopes that I wouldn’t have to find a new home,” he said. “So it’s kind of bittersweet. I guess it’s cool to be able to control where you go. But I’ve done that still under contract.”
The Jets’ receiver room could look very different.
Garrett Wilson is under contract, but he’s been frustrated because of all of the losing. He wouldn’t commit to signing a long-term extension with the Jets if they offer him one this offseason. Allen Lazard, another former Packer who came to play with Rodgers, could be released.
One prominent Jet on the defensive side of the ball stated his case to stay with the team long term. Cornerback Sauce Gardner, who like Wilson is eligible for an extension, said he wants to be an agent of change for the franchise.
“I want to be a part of this for a long time,” he said. “I want to be a part of the change in this organization because if I was to go somewhere else and then it was to change, I would be a hater.”
The consensus among the players is that the Jets need a coach who brings a winning culture to the organization. Adams believed he could help change things, but he arrived the week after the Jets fired Robert Saleh. They were in disarray, and things fell apart from there.
“There’s a lot of pieces that go into it,” Adams said about building a culture. “Every floor of this building is important to changing the culture. You can win games, but to be able to establish a winning culture is a different thing.
“You need guys to buy in and you need a coach that’s able to come in here and win over the players and be somebody that holds everybody accountable so you can get back to that old- school feel of players and coaches both holding the team accountable to get the most out of the team.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
