After hanging on every piece of Brandon Aiyuk news, Pittsburgh Steelers fans may not have the constitution to survive a months-long “will he/won’t he” wide receiver trade saga. Fortunately, if NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo’s reporting is accurate, Davante Adams’ time on the trade block will be far shorter. And a deal could happen long before the Nov. 5th deadline. On Wednesday’s episode of The Insiders, Garafolo says the odds are good for Adams to be traded next week.
“How quickly is this gonna happen because we’ve got that trade deadline off in the distance, which is in the first week of November, as we’ve talked about repeatedly,” Garafolo told the show. “I don’t think we get close to there. I think it’s done well before there…I think next week is the hot zone for this to get done. I really do.”
Of course, with the trade deadline just more than one month away, Adams’ saga can’t take as long as Aiyuk’s. A Steelers proposal the NFL adopted pushed the deadline back one week to after Week 9, giving teams more time to evaluate if they’re buyers or sellers. But Adams seems to want out for reasons beyond his team’s record, the Raiders off to a competitive 2-2 start. Previous years of losing, uninspiring quarterback play, and a social media controversy with head coach Antonio Pierce appear to be the catalyst for Adams requesting a trade.
Several factors are complicating a trade. His preferences, reportedly wanting to reunite with either New York Jets QB Aaron Rodgers or the New Orleans Saints’ Derek Carr. There’s his large contract and the likelihood of restructuring his deal, especially for teams who want to keep him past 2024. And Adams has a hamstring injury, which NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero said is “legitimate” and not a fake injury designed to keep him out of the lineup until he’s traded. Adams has already been ruled out for Week 5, though it appears he could be healthy by Week 6. That’s when the Steelers take on the Raiders. The two sides have reportedly discussed a deal, though there’s no reporting a deal is imminent.
“Right now, the Raiders are canvassing the market trying to see what the interest is out there. Which there is plenty. And then trying to see what the prices that teams are gonna be willing to meet.”
The Jets are considered the frontrunners to land Adams, but as we’ve seen before, what the pundits predict and what happens can be two different things.
Of course, the Aiyuk saga had reporters declaring several times when a deal was expected to get done, only for the situation to blow past all those timelines. In the end, no one accurately predicted when there would be a resolution, and Aiyuk re-signed to stay with the 49ers long-term. The Raiders may have no obligation to trade him and could wait for the strongest offer along with all of the above complicating factors in getting a deal done. The expectation is that Adams will fetch at least a Day Two draft pick and something else.
The sooner, the better. For Adams and for Steelers’ Nation wearing the scars of the last receiver trade rumors.
