Packers: Does QB uncertainty affect Davante Adams’ future?

For a couple of weeks after the Green Bay Packers‘ loss in the NFC Championship Game, there were a lot questions marks being raised regarding the future of MVP QB Aaron Rodgers.

This talk eventually died down, until Mark Murphy re-opened the can of worms in an online press conference last week. After being asked why the Packers have not yet chosen to restructure Aaron Rodgers’ contract, Murphy declined to comment.

Of course, Rodgers’ relationship with the Packers has been reported in excruciating detail over the last year, and completely overblown in many instances. But one element of the situation that I feel we don’t talk about enough is the future of Davante Adams. The All-Pro WR is entering the final season of his contract and will likely be in talks with the Packers for an extension this offseason.

One of the biggest bargaining chips for a team looking to sign a WR is having an elite QB to pair them with. For Davante Adams, he’s had the luxury of catching passes from Aaron Rodgers for almost his entire career.

You could argue there aren’t any QB-WR duos in the NFL that possess as much chemistry as Rodgers and Adams do, and they’re fresh off their very best season together, and are now commonly regarded as the best tandem in football.

That brings me to the looming Adams contract situation. While it’s unlikely, it’s not completely asinine to suggest that Adams may not want to be back in Green Bay unless Rodgers is locked in as QB1 going forward.

Adams knows that he would be offered big money to play elsewhere next season if he hit the open market, with some teams offering exciting young QBs to pair him with. Obviously we have no idea how Adams feels about Jordan Love, and whether or not he is confident he could continue to produce at the highest level with Love at the helm.

It’s worth noting that Adams’ success hasn’t just come with Rodgers throwing him the ball. In fact, Adams truly burst onto the scene when Brett Hundley led the Pack in 2017 while Rodgers was sidelined with a broken collarbone.

In the 2017 season, Adams led the Packers in receiving yards and touchdowns, along with an outstanding passer rating of 120.3 when targeted. He hasn’t looked back since.

From the point of view of the Packers’ front office, Adams’ contract situation is going to be pretty tricky. He has vastly out-performed his current contract which ended up being a total a steal for Green Bay. This likely makes Davante’s desire to be the highest paid WR in football even stronger.

So where do the Packers go? Do they front-load Adams contract, which will result in other cap casualties however it would give them an option to move on from Adams when he inevitably regresses in his mid-30’s?

Or do they back-load his contract, meaning they can keep most of the current roster intact, but run the risk of carrying a painfully large cap hit on a washed WR in later years, similar to A.J. Green on the Bengals last season. Either way, this will be far from a straightforward process for both parties.