Davante Adams has requested a trade from the Las Vegas Raiders, and the New England Patriots have been named as a potential destination for the star wide receiver.
The Patriots seem to make sense as a landing spot given the fact that they did pursue a trade for San Francisco 49ers wide out Brandon Aiyuk before the season started, but the catch is that Adams is significantly older than Aiyuk.
Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated mentioned the caveat himself.
“Aiyuk was a long-term play,” Orr wrote. “He’s far younger than Adams and could grow with Drake Maye whenever the former No. 3 pick assumes the starting quarterback job.”
But those not enamored with the idea of Adams in New England may not need to worry: it doesn’t appear that the Pats will be acquiring him, anyway.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter has reported that Adams prefers to be traded to either the New York Jets or New Orleans Saints, which is certainly understandable given that both of Adams’ former quarterbacks—Aaron Rodgers and Derek Carr—play for those teams, respectively.
“Two teams high on Davante Adams’ wishlist of places to land – if not at the very top – are the Jets and Saints, per league sources,” Schefter reported. “Adams ideally would like to play with a QB he knows.”
That almost surely rules out the Patriots.
Plus, you would think that Adams—who is 31 years old and still has not won a Super Bowl—would want to play for a contender, and New England would not present that opportunity for him.
Remember: the reason the Pats were unable to land Aiyuk was because the 49ers star did not want to play for them.
The six-time Pro Bowler is under contract through 2026, so it’s not like he can walk via free agency in March, but it just seems hard to imagine that Adams would be content playing for a Patriots squad that has certainly not resembled a playoff team.
