Why Davante Adams chose Raiders over Packers despite less money
Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams made it clear that money had nothing to do with his decision to join his new team.
In the end, All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams chose the Las Vegas Raiders over staying with the Green Bay Packers. The five-time Pro Bowl selection confirmed to reporters that the Packers offered him more money this offseason than the Raiders, with whom Adams signed a five-year, $141.25million contract extension after being traded.
After the Packers traded Adams in March for a first-round draft pick and a second-round draft pick, reports surfaced that Green Bay was willing to pay the star receiver just as much – and maybe more – than Las Vegas. Adams confirmed those reports in a press conference Thursday.
“You guys have heard Green Bay offered this, which is higher than what I was [going to make with the Raiders] and all of that. And, yeah, I’ll say it, it was true. OK, it was true,” Adams said.
“But there’s much more that goes into it. And family is a big part of it for me. So, geographically being here, it makes it a lot easier for me to stay connected to my family year-round.
“And this isn’t year two, or I’m not trying to necessarily fight for a job or anything like that to where you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do – you’ve got to stay out there. I had the choice, and the choice was for me to come here and raise my family on the West Coast and come out here and have some fun in the sun.”
Adams, who ranks second all-time in Packers history with 73 receiving touchdowns, leaves four-time MVP and 38-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers to reunite with Derek Carr, who was Adams’ quarterback at Fresno State.
“[Rodgers and I] talked throughout the whole process,” Adams said in his press conference. “Just like what he said the other day, we had talks about his future and what he thinks his duration in Green Bay or just football in general would look like.
“And that played into my decision as well because where I am in my career – and this isn’t a shot at any other quarterbacks in Green Bay. I love Jordan Love especially, he’s a great guy. But I’ve got aspirations of doing really, really big things and being remembered.
“And it just wasn’t really a point in my career that I was willing to sacrifice Aaron not being there after a year or two. So my decision was to be here and he respected that, he understood that.”