Aaron Rodgers didn’t say much, but ultimately said plenty, on Thursday night regarding the departure of receiver Davante Adams from Green Bay. From the words Rodgers chose to use, some fair conclusions can be drawn.
For starters, he didn’t know Adams was planning to leave when Rodgers decided to stay. More specifically, Rodgers expected that the Packers and Adams would work out a new contract. That’s a huge assumption that failed to come to fruition.
“Obviously, when I made my decision, I was still thinking he was gonna come back,” Rodgers told Pat McAfee. “You know, I was very honest with him about my plans and my future and where I, you know, saw my career going as far as how many years I wanted to play. But I felt like he was gonna be back. Did not see it turn out that way.”
So why did he think Adams was coming back? What did Adams say or do to make him think that? Consider this: Adams made it clear after being traded to the Raiders that he and quarterback Derek Carr spent time plotting and planning the move, well before it happened.
“It’s something we didn’t entertain during the season,” Adams told reporters in late March. “Once we wrapped up the season, started communicating a little bit. . . . As things progressed a little bit more, obviously we communicate multiple times a week as it is, aside from even trying to team up. So once we got to a point where it was something that could be realistic now, it’s not just a thought, we started trying to put a little bit of a plan together. And obviously I was still back going back with Green Bay at that point and still weighing my options.”
The options included staying in Green Bay. Rodgers believed that the prospect of being paid by the Packers and staying with Rodgers would outweigh a Raiders contract and teaming up with Carr.
“I thought that based on the number that we offered Davante and, you know, being able to play with me a few more years would definitely make a difference,” Rodgers told McAfee. “But in the end, I think he was ready to move on and wanted my help in making that happen.”
Rodgers focused on the decision made by Adams. However, by the time the Packers made their offer to Adams, it was too late. Does Rodgers wish the Packers had gotten more serious with Adams before the offseason? Rodgers wasn’t asked that question.
Second, Rodgers made it clear that he was “very honest” with Adams “about my plans and my future.” Does Rodgers believe that Adams was honest with Rodgers about his own plans? Although Rodgers wasn’t asked that question, it sure sounds like Adams didn’t come clean with Rodgers until it was too late. Otherwise, Rodgers would have known Adams was leaving before Rodgers decided to stay.
Third, and most importantly, would Rodgers have made a different decision if he’d known Adams was leaving? Rodgers wasn’t asked that question either. And while Rodgers most likely wouldn’t have said “I would have chosen to leave,” it would have been very interesting to see how he squirmed his way through it. Along the way, Rodgers may have said something that would have underscored the reality that, even though he decided to stick around for 2022, he could very well decide to move on in 2023.
