FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Davante Adams will be Aaron Rodgers’ house guest for a while, at least until the New York Jets’ newly acquired wide receiver gets situated.
So, they drove together to the team facility Wednesday morning. And then sat next to each other during the team meeting, just like old times.
“I turned to him and just said, ‘Man, how crazy is this?’” Rodgers said with a big grin. “It’s something that when we get together in the offseasons, we joke about, but it never seemed like a possibility or going to happen.
“So it’s good to be with him.”
The two longtime Green Bay Packers teammates will also be back together on the football field in Pittsburgh on Sunday night, when Adams expects to make his Jets debut and catch passes again from his pal.
“Definitely, I’ll be able to roll,” Adams said.
The star wide receiver, acquired from Las Vegas on Tuesday, was limited during the team’s walkthrough session. Adams missed the Raiders’ past three games with a hamstring injury that coincided with his request to be traded.
After a whirlwind 48 hours and months of speculation, he was back with Rodgers and in his familiar No. 17 jersey — this time in green and white.
“It’s been a roller coaster, for sure,” Adams said. “It’s a weird thing to say that I’m happy, but obviously, it was time for a change. And this whole thing kind of transpired a little weird, but at the end of the day, we’re in a better place.
“I think the Raiders are in a better place, as well. And everyone can kind of move on. But it’s definitely been a roller coaster — a little bit up and down and left and right here and there. But we ultimately got it done.”
The 31-year-old Adams caught 103 passes last season for 1,144 yards and eight touchdowns for the Raiders, his second season in Las Vegas after eight with Rodgers in Green Bay.
He had 18 receptions for 209 yards and a touchdown in three games with Las Vegas this season before the hamstring injury — and subsequent trade request. Adams acknowledged he was frustrated and needed a change.
When asked about what he meant by both sides being better off, Adams said “let me choose my words carefully here” and talked about a difference in opinion of how he was being used, some of the offensive plans and how defenses were defending him.
“Just because they want to line up with the safety and try to play cover-2, we don’t just shut it down and move on,” Adams said. “Sometimes you’ve got to find a way to still make the play work because if you’re just looking for single coverage in order for me to make a play, I won’t be able to make many plays over the course of a year, just based on how I’m being played by a lot of these defenses.
“I think some of it is: Get me to a place where I’ve got a lot of familiarity with this offense and the quarterback. (Rodgers) understands how I see the game and how I see the ball thrown and all those things and sometimes he can make it easier.”
Adams and Rodgers will immediately renew their on-field connection, which was one of the greatest quarterback-wide receivers in recent NFL history. Adams caught 615 passes from Rodgers for 7,517 yards and 68 touchdowns during eight seasons together in Green Bay. That’s the most in all three categories between any combination of active players.
He’ll join a suddenly crowded Jets wide receivers group that includes Garrett Wilson, who leads New York with 41 receptions, Allen Lazard, Mike Williams, Xavier Gipson, Irvin Charles and rookie Malachi Corley. There are some questions as to how new offensive play caller Todd Downing will be able to find roles for everyone while also integrating Adams into the system.
“It’s a really cool problem to have,” interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich said. “It’s going to give us an opportunity to have more flexibility where we move these guys around.”
Williams, a free agent signing last offseason, has been slow to develop a rapport with Rodgers. He was the intended receiver when Rodgers threw interceptions on the Jets’ last offensive series in losses to Buffalo and Minnesota. Rodgers said Williams was in the wrong spot on the throw that was picked off by Taron Johnson on Monday night.
Adams’ arrival, in particular, clouds Williams’ role in the offense. Williams was not at the team’s walkthrough Wednesday for what the team listed on the injury report as “personal” reasons.
Meanwhile, ESPN reported Adams restructured his contract to lower his salary cap this season and two voidable years were added, so the sides can negotiate moving forward. His salary cap hit would be $44.1 million in each of the next two seasons.
Adams made it clear he’s looking at the Jets as a long-term destination.
“I mean, I hope so,” he said. “That’s the plan. I mean, I want to be here. I never go somewhere in hopes of having to find a new home.”
Injuries
Rodgers sat out the walkthrough while resting his banged-up left ankle. The 40-year-old quarterback was limited during the team’s first two practices last week before fully participating last Saturday. Ulbrich said Rodgers should practice Thursday and be fine to play Sunday.
Cornerbacks D.J. Reed (groin) and Michael Carter II (back) also didn’t practice and could miss the game.
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