Jets Trade Idea Lands $84 Million Pro Bowler In Straight Swap For Davante Adams

How soon will Adams be on the move?

Jan 5, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich speaks with wide receiver Davante Adams (17) during pregame warmups for their game against the Miami Dolphins at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images / Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

The New York Jets hitched their wagon to Aaron Rodgers for two years and it didn't do them much good. Now, they're trying a new direction.

In mid-February, the Jets announced their intention to move on from Rodgers, which means they will almost certainly have to cut him and eat his $49 million dead cap hit. But Rodgers' fate with the Jets was also inextricably tied to his longtime favorite target.

Wideout Davante Adams, who the Jets acquired via trade in October from the Las Vegas Raiders, is on his way out as well. The Jets will cut him too if they must, but at age 32 and coming off a 1,063-yard season (14 games played), there may well be a team willing to take Adams on in a trade.

One hypothetical trade scenario for Adams represents a full-circle moment.

On Monday, Bleacher Report's Alex Kay proposed a handful of hypothetical Adams trades, and one idea he had was to ship the six-time Pro Bowler back to the Green Bay Packers, where he dominated for eight seasons, in exchange for disgruntled former All-Pro cornerback Jaire Alexander.

"Considering Adams has tallied at least 85 catches and 1,000 yards in each of the last five seasons, he could immediately step in and take back the role he long shined in for the Packers," Kay wrote.

"Green Bay has an ideal trade chip to acquire Adams as well. With rumblings that star cornerback Jaire Alexander is on his way out, the Packers could offer him to the Jets as a way to seamlessly replace D.J. Reed."

Alexander, 28, made the Pro Bowl and garnered second-team All-Pro honors in both 2020 and 2022. He has two years remaining on the four-year, $84 million extension he signed in 2022, which has borne out very little return on investment so far for the Packers.

Because Adams carries a cap hit of $38.5 million this season, there's a chance Green Bay might say no purely because of the money involved. But Adams is also a more durable and reliable player at this stage of the two players' careers, so there's an outside shot all parties involved would be on board.

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