Agent’s Take: Packers could pay the price for Aaron Rodgers rift when it comes to new deal with Davante Adams

Davante Adams weighed in on the rift between the Packers and Aaron Rodgers final week. Inexperienced Bay ought to be involved in regards to the potential residual results of Rodgers’ discontent. “It doesn’t imply probably I’d be gone, however I’d positively must do some additional pondering if my man (referring to Rodgers) wasn’t right here,” Adams stated throughout an interview on Fox Sports activities Radio when requested about his future in Inexperienced Bay.

The Professional Bowl broad receiver is getting into the ultimate 12 months of a four-year, $58 million contract extension (with an extra $750,000 in wage escalators) signed on the finish of the 2017 common season. He’s scheduled to make $13.25 million this 12 months.

As a former agent, I took Adams’ remark to imply the Packers are going to must pay him a premium if he’s going to be catching passes sooner or later from 2023 first-round decide Jordan Love, an unproven commodity, moderately than the reigning NFL MVP. Sometimes, the Packers are proactive in signing core gamers to extensions earlier than free company is imminent. Even with out the Rodgers situation, retaining Adams long run may very well be a tough job.

Adams was arguably the NFL’s greatest broad receiver in 2023. He was named All-Professional after catching 115 passes, essentially the most ever for the Packers in a season, for 1,374 yards and 18 touchdowns. Adams led the NFL with 98.1 receiving yards per sport. His 18 landing catches additionally led the NFL and tied a Inexperienced Bay single-season file.

Adams could make a case that he ought to be the NFL’s highest-paid broad receiver not solely due to his efficiency in 2023 however as a result of his consistency over the past three seasons. Since 2018, Adams ranks third within the NFL with 309 receptions, fourth in receiving yards (3,757) and his 36 landing catches are essentially the most within the league. He’s the one participant to put among the many prime 5 in these classes for this three-year interval.

DeAndre Hopkins tops the broad receiver pay scale with the two-year, $54.5 million extension he acquired from the Cardinals as the beginning of the 2023 common season was approaching, though he had three years left on his current contract. He’s additionally the NFL’s highest-paid non-quarterback at $27.25 million per 12 months. The Hopkins contract has $49.4 million in ensures the place $42.5 million was totally assured. His $27.5 million signing bonus is a file for a large receiver.

Falcons broad receiver Julio Jones is second amongst receivers at $22 million per 12 months. Keenan Allen (Chargers) and Amari Cooper (Cowboys) are the one different members of the $20 million-per-year go catchers membership at $20.025 million and $20 million per 12 months, respectively.

Any Adams extension would wish to set a brand new customary for signing bonus with broad receivers and favorable money circulate due to how Inexperienced Bay constructions veteran contracts. The one assured cash in Inexperienced Bay offers is a signing bonus. The lone exception is Rodgers, whose offers have typical contract ensures.

The larger offers include a 3rd or fifth day of the league 12 months roster bonus within the second and third years. The roster bonuses are imagined to be substitutes for added contract ensures. The general ensures in Inexperienced Bay contracts are normally lower than comparable offers on different groups.

The Packers don’t have an ideal historical past in giving broad receivers a 3rd contract. Greg Jennings left in 2013 free company for the Vikings as a 29-year-old after an damage plagued 2012 season. The Packers had broad receiver depth in Randall Cobb, James Jones and Jordy Nelson on the time. Jones signed with the Raiders as a free agent the next 12 months, on the verge of turning 30. He was by no means thought-about a reliable No. 1 broad receiver. A 28-year-old Cobb joined the Cowboys in 2019 after his second contract expired. Cobb’s final three seasons in Inexperienced Bay didn’t meet expectations.

Nelson is the one one to get a 3rd contract with the Packers. He signed a second extension in 2014, his contract 12 months, at 29. Nelson was coming off a 2013 season the place he caught 85 passes for 1,314 yards with eight touchdowns.

Adams, who turns 29 in December, performs a much bigger function in Inexperienced Bay’s passing offense than any of those guys ever did. The mixed manufacturing of Inexperienced Bay’s different broad receivers in 2023 didn’t equal Adams’. Their collective manufacturing was 88 catches for 1,390 yards with 11 touchdowns. This group produced 86.9 yards per sport. Barring a significant damage to Adams or Rodgers getting traded, presumably to the Broncos, this dynamic is unlikely to dramatically change in the course of the 2023 season.

Adams is a chief candidate for a franchise tag in 2023 absent a brand new deal. His nonexclusive franchise tag shall be $20.12 million as a result of it will likely be primarily based off a 120 % improve of his 2023 wage, which is actually his cap quantity for these functions.

It’s exhausting to think about the Packers letting Adams depart in free company subsequent 12 months for only a 2023 third-round compensatory draft decide at greatest, regardless of the NFL’s most difficult wage cap scenario for 2023. The Packers have a league-high $224.42 million in 2023 cap commitments with 36 gamers below contract, in response to NFLPA knowledge. The highest 51 salaries (i.e.; cap numbers) matter with offseason wage cap accounting guidelines.

The 2023 wage cap ought to be within the $195 million to $200 million neighborhood if the projections Payments normal supervisor Brandon Beane lately revealed he was utilizing for subsequent 12 months are correct. This is able to give the Packers an overage between $40 million to $45 million with a whole prime 51, earlier than factoring in a possible Adams franchise tag.

Comparatively talking, the wage cap gymnastics Inexperienced Bay must carry out to accommodate Adams wouldn’t be monumental, though not preferrred. For instance, the Saints needed to shed over $100 million in cap commitments via contract restructures, releases and trades this 12 months with the wage cap dropping by $15.7 million and nonetheless discovered a method to put a franchise tag on security Marcus Williams.

The Packers would decide up $22.648 million of 2023 cap area by sticking to the unique plan of getting Love turn into Rodgers’ alternative as early as subsequent season. Dealing Rodgers might consequence within the closing of Inexperienced Bay’s championship window.

It would make sense to discover franchising Adams and buying and selling him below these circumstances. The draft capital the Vikings acquired for broad receiver Stefon Diggs would in all probability be extra indicative of what the Packers might get for Adams than the Texans’ return for Hopkins for the reason that normal consensus is the Cardinals fleeced Houston. The Payments gave up a 2023 first-round decide, a 2023 fifth-round decide, a 2023 sixth-round and a 2023 fourth-round decide to get Diggs and a 2023 seventh-round decide.