Packers: How much would franchise tag for Davante Adams cost?

How much would it cost the Packers to franchise tag Davante Adams?

Along with the uncertain future of MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers this offseason, another big question for the Green Bay Packers is whether All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams will be back.

Adams is a free agent this offseason. If he remains unsigned when the new league year begins, we can expect teams across the NFL to be interested.

However, it might never come to that.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Packers are “expected” to use the franchise tag on Adams, which would prevent him from hitting free agency. As Rapoport notes in the article, the Packers would then “work toward a potential new deal”.

So it’s possible using the franchise tag would only be a short-term thing if the Packers and Adams were able to agree on a long-term deal over the summer.

But there’s still one issue.

Even if a long-term deal was eventually agreed, Green Bay would still need to make room on the cap for the franchise tag before then. For a team that’s approximately $46 million over the cap, per Spotrac, that’s far from easy.

How much would franchise-tagging Davante Adams cost Packers?

There’s a reason why the Packers rarely use the franchise tag. It doesn’t suit anybody. The Packers would have to take on a big cap hit for 2022, while Adams doesn’t get the chance to land a long-term deal either in Green Bay or elsewhere.

But how much would franchise-tagging Adams actually cost?

Over The Cap has projected the franchise tag costs at each position. At wide receiver, it would be a one-year deal worth $19.13 million.

To make that work and get under the 2022 cap, the Packers would need to create that $19.13 million as well as the $46 million they already need to free up.

General manager Brian Gutekunst would need to release some players, restructure deals, and work on contract extensions to get 2022 cap numbers down. If Adams is back on the franchise tag, a decision would need to be made on Aaron Rodgers’ future to get his cap hit down.

Either Rodgers returns on a new deal to lower his 2022 cap hit, or leaves via either trade or retirement. No matter what, Rodgers’ cap hit needs to be lowered somehow.

Maybe the Packers and Adams can work out a deal before the need to use the franchise tag. If they do tag Adams, finding a way to make it work on the salary cap will be a huge challenge.