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Paul Gutierrez, ESPN Staff Writer
HENDERSON, Nev. — Davante Adams‘ smile popped off the page of his third-grade yearbook photo in East Palo Alto, California. And why not? The precocious Adams, already a huge Raiders fan, was rocking a Charles Woodson jersey in the pic, with his life goal floating in a thought bubble above his head.
“NBA or NFL star,” it read.
So when Adams, after eight seasons with the Green Bay Packers, put on his own black Raiders jersey with the silver No. 17 on it for the first time, that childhood grin returned. And it only got bigger when a familiar face came running up to him in the middle of an interview during the team’s media day in June 2022. It was three months after Adams agreed to a blockbuster trade to get Adams closer to his Bay Area family and reunite him with his college quarterback from Fresno State.
“Good to see you, bro,” then-Raiders quarterback Derek Carr sighed as he grabbed Adams in a bear hug. “Good to see you in that Silver and Black. Ooooh.”
Adams’ grin grew wider.
“Oh yeah, this is your first time [seeing me in this], huh?” Adams said with a laugh, tugging on the bottom of the jersey. “It really hit me today.”
Just over two years later, a different reality is hitting Adams and the Raiders as the wide receiver is rocking a different jersey, one belonging to the New York Jets, after being dealt for a conditional third-round pick Tuesday. After a star-crossed 37 games with his childhood favorite team, Adams’ legacy with Las Vegas is complicated.
On one hand, he did have an All-Pro season that first year in Las Vegas with 100 catches for a career-high 1,516 yards and league-leading 14 receiving touchdowns. His 15.2 yards per catch average was a career best. Even as Carr was benched with two games to play in the regular season and responded by leaving the team. Plus, Adams was seen as the ultimate team-first guy and one of the most popular players in the locker room and among fans.
On the other hand, and in the eyes of many fans, Adams’ heel turn was eerily reminiscent of Randy Moss, another elite wideout who arrived via trade in 2005 amid great fanfare but became disillusioned with the state of the franchise and checked out after two seasons. The Raiders got a fourth-round draft pick from the New England Patriots for Moss, who resurrected his Hall of Fame career.
Still, Adams did not flinch when Carr was benched in 2022, instead embracing replacement quarterback Jarrett Stidham.
“You got to be a pretty tough guy to sit in there and take a hit like that,” Adams said after Stidham took a huge hit while delivering a 60-yard touchdown pass in his first start. “Just to make sure you give it everything you got as far as exhausting all your options.
“I got a lot of respect for the way he sees the game in that aspect.”
But after that season, and following then-general manager Dave Ziegler and then-coach Josh McDaniels cutting Carr and signing an injured Jimmy Garoppolo as the starter, Adams told The Ringer he didn’t “see eye-to-eye” with the front office and its vision.
Early in the 2023 season, Adams told ESPN he had no “expectations” when he came to Las Vegas but “it’s not what I wanted, for sure.”
Then, this summer, his sideline rant in the Netflix series “Receiver” raised eyebrows in the Raiders compound.
“I gotta get the f— out of here before I lose my f—ing life,” Adams said to no one in particular. “I ain’t never been hit this many f—ing times in my career. Every game, I get f—ed up.”
It wasn’t that incident that drew attention in the Raiders building and locker room. After all, as cornerback Nate Hobbs said, “That’s ball.”
What caused consternation was Adams, as a willing participant in the series, allowed the footage to air. Plus, a league source said there were more disparaging scenes Adams had to be talked out of approving for the show.
Adams, who said he would “run through a wall for” head coach Antonio Pierce upon his elevation to interim head coach on Nov. 1, had been a team leader from a watch-my-example standpoint. But he was being looked upon to be more of a vocal leader this season.
Yet, he was “in and out” of voluntary OTAs, and posted a video of himself washing his car on social media while his teammates were practicing. That, despite the Raiders bringing in a new offensive scheme — Adams had endorsed hiring offensive coordinator Luke Getsy since they had worked together in Green Bay — and a new quarterback in Gardner Minshew. That seemed uncharacteristic for Adams, several team sources said. Especially when he left the team for two weeks in training camp for the birth of his son.
After Adams returned, he said if it was up to him, he would not play in the preseason, just before Pierce said every healthy starter would play in the exhibition finale against the Dallas Cowboys. Adams had soreness before the Cowboys game and did not suit up.
In his final game with the Raiders, a loss to the Carolina Panthers, Adams was slow to leave the bench for the locker room at halftime. He injured his hamstring at practice the following week and watched the Raiders’ win over the Cleveland Browns from the Allegiant Stadium sidelines, sprinting to celebrate DJ Turner‘s first career TD.
If last impressions are the lasting ones, Adams finished his Raiders career with 221 catches for 2,869 yards and 23 touchdowns in 37 games, and a 15-22 record in games he played without a playoff appearance.
Adams, 31, is one of the best route runners, most sure-handed pass catchers and a master in the art of late-hands catching in the game. He wants consistency and a shot at winning a Super Bowl.
“Obviously, I wanted to come here and have a big impact, continue to play at a high level and win games,” Adams said. “And a lot of those things have happened — just not the winning part.
“It’s a gamble sometimes. You never really know.”