Though the deadline remains weeks away, will the Pittsburgh Steelers trade for a wide receiver, and if so, could that name be the Las Vegas Raiders’ Davante Adams? It’s obviously hard to answer both of those questions at this very moment. But with it certainly sounding like Adams’ time in Las Vegas might be winding down, let’s look at the plausibility of the Steelers trading for him.
For starters, it’s important to highlight that Adams is soon to be 32 in December. It’s also important to remind everyone that he has reportedly been dealing with a hamstring injury.
From a financial standpoint, Adams has hefty amounts left on his contract with the Raiders, which runs through the 2026 season, according to Over the Cap. Adams still has $13,136,666 owed to him in base salary for 2024 with four games played so far, along with a low amount in per-game roster bonuses. Adams also is due $35.64 million and $36.64 million in base salaries in 2025 and 2026, which are obviously big amounts. Those amounts, however, are not fully guaranteed.
Adams’ salary will decrease by $938,333 every game he plays for Raiders moving forward. The Raiders are 2-2 right now, so the team trading him in the next few weeks seems sort of unlikely. However, the closer we get to the trade deadline the steam obviously would pick up if the Raiders are deemed out of the playoff race by then.
By trading Adams, the Raiders would incur a dead-money charge of $15.7 million in 2025 along with $7.85 million in 2024. Even so, it’s not likely that Adams would have seen those 2025 and 2026 contract years, meaning it would be more about the Raiders getting something for him before this year’s trade deadline.
At almost 32, and with those high-dollar years left in 2025 and 2026, I don’t imagine the trade compensation would be all that high for Adams. Any team trading for him might have to treat him like a half-season rental unless he is willing to adjust the final two years of his current contract. Speculate on that sentence as you deem necessary. Teams interested in trading for Adams might also ask the Raiders to take on some of whatever remains of his 2024 base salary as well. That’s not an uncommon or unreasonable ask in this situation.
Now, with it seemingly trending more and more likely that Adams will ultimately be on another team before the trade deadline, one must really wonder how big of player the New York Jets might be in such negotiations, especially if they continue to have winning record. That’s easy to speculate because of Adams’ longtime connection with Jets QB Aaron Rodgers.
The Steelers, according to the Tuesday morning update on the NFLPA public salary cap page, have just $8,175,182 in 2024 salary cap space. They could obviously create more cap space if they needed to, mainly by restructuring the contract of S Minkah Fitzpatrick. I would think they would like to avoid that, however. Regardless, there are ways for the Pittsburgh Steelers to afford Davante Adams’ base salary as it sits right now.
The most plausible thing overall when it comes to the Steelers potentially trading for Adams would be for a deal to happen closer to the deadline as the wide receiver’s remaining 2024 salary would then be lower by a few more games. From there, and assuming the Steelers avoided other restructurings to accommodate that remaining Adams base salary, the team could then restructure the remaining base salary amount and spread the signing bonus over 2024, 2025, and 2026 to lower his cap charge this year. However, in doing such a restructuring, the Steelers likely would expect the final two years of that bonus proration to go on the books as dead money in 2025 if they can’t get Adams to at least reduce the 2025 amount at some point.
Basically, it would be reasonable to expect the Steelers to view Adams as a half-season rental if they indeed ultimately trade for him. If that were indeed their view of him, it’s hard to imagine them giving the Raiders much in the form of trade compensation. Certainly not a first- second- or third-round pick and probably more like a fifth, at the most.
So, is the Steelers ultimately trading for Adams plausible? The short answer to that question is yes. Even so, I would think Adams being traded to the Jets is a lot more likely. Regardless, it will be interesting to watch Adams’ situation with the Raiders play out over the next few weeks. Additionally, the Steelers are sure to need another wide receiver between now and the trade deadline, even if they can finally get rookie WR Roman Wilson on the field in the next few weeks.
