Davante Adams doesn’t want the franchise tag.
Asked in early January how he’d feel about the Green Bay Packers franchise-tagging him after an NFL Network report surfaced that they were leaning that way, Adams navigated controversy like he does single coverage.
“I’m not sure,” he said. “I’m not sure how to answer that safely right now, so we’ll just cross that bridge when we get to it. I’ll just say that. I like to be professional on here.”
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His answer spoke just as loudly as if he had vehemently rejected the idea of getting tagged, which the Packers have from Tuesday until March 8 to do.
“I don’t think 17 wants the franchise (tag),” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said on “The Pat McAfee Show” after the season. “No player ever wants the franchise.”
Diving into what will be the five biggest storylines of the Packers offseason:
• Aaron Rodgers’ future, of course
• Tag or extension for Davante?
• The Jordan Love domino
• New ST coordinator. Now what?
• How they’ll get under the capStory: https://t.co/v7mtb04y8K
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) February 15, 2022
Adams has established himself as arguably the best wide receiver in football and a potential future Hall of Famer. Since 2016, he has more receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches than anyone at his position. Adams is also set to hit unrestricted free agency on March 16, and team president Mark Murphy told podcaster Tom Grossi last August that third contracts make sense only for Hall of Famers.
General manager Brian Gutekunst said last preseason that Adams deserves to be the highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL. But Adams and agent Frank Bauer cut off contract talks on the eve of training camp because they wanted an extension that eclipsed DeAndre Hopkins’ league-leading $27.25 million average annual value. Asked what his definition of “highest paid” was since the sides evidently viewed the term differently, Gutekunst declined to elaborate. Adams also said he wouldn’t take a deal that didn’t make him the highest-paid wideout in the league if it meant staying with Rodgers in Green Bay because he has earned the right to call himself the highest-paid player at his position.
“I sat down with ‘Tae’ for a while today, and we kind of talked everything through,” head coach Matt LaFleur said the Monday after the Packers’ season ended. “Again, another guy that we’re hopeful we can come to an agreement with, and obviously he’s done so much on the field, but I think it’s still the stuff that you all don’t get to see, within the meeting room, with how he talks to his teammates, with how he sets a standard for everybody. There’s a reason he was voted the captain, rightfully so. He earned that, and I told him that he’s definitely earned the respect of not only his teammates but all of his coaches as well. I think everybody in this organization (respects) his ability to compartmentalize his own situation and go out there and compete at the level he did each and every week, putting himself out there, obviously, in a contract year and just bringing it and playing at the highest of levels.
“I think he’s the best receiver in the league.”
If you missed my Packers Live Room with subscribers yesterday, here’s the full audio in podcast form: https://t.co/twgRlYaHH0
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) February 17, 2022
The Packers could franchise-tag Adams to buy themselves time to work on an extension while preventing him from hitting the open market. The deadline to extend a player who has been franchise-tagged is July 15. If the Packers tag Adams but don’t extend him by the deadline, would he hold out or show up to training camp? Last offseason, Adams was asked whether he’d show up to camp without an extension and he said yes because he’d never cost himself money he has already earned. With the franchise-tag salary fully guaranteed upon signing, you’d think Adams would show up again this year without an extension, even if he’s not happy about it.
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Adams’ $14.5 million average annual value ranks 19th among wide receivers, which is a bargain for the Packers the last couple of years given his production. According to Spotrac, a franchise tag for Adams this year would be valued at $20.12 million. Since that salary is fully guaranteed, it takes up that much in cap space. Adams wants an extension, which would likely pay him at least $5 million more per year and could save the Packers significant cap space this year.
Though the franchise-tag designation is easier to execute than an extension, the Packers could save significant cap space by extending Adams instead of franchise-tagging him.
Here is what Spotrac co-founder Michael Ginnitti explained to The Athletic in a recent piece breaking down the Packers’ offseason from a cap perspective:
“This is going to be expensive despite the fact that Adams will be approaching 30 years old at the start of next season. Adams carries a near-$26 million per year valuation in our system, but for the purposes of a multiyear outlook, we’ll assume a five-year, $125 million extension this offseason.
“In this projection, Adams gets a $35 million signing bonus, $52.6 million over two years and more than $73 million across the first three seasons. These cumulative values are far and away the highest among wide receiver contracts. The real sticking point here is the 2022 cap hit, which comes in at just $9.13 million, $11 million less than his franchise tag.
“In terms of guarantees, the first two seasons are fully locked in at signing ($50.62 million), while his $19.38 million salary in 2023 becomes fully guaranteed in March 2022. This means a practical contract of three years and $73 million through 2024 with a clear out thereafter for the Packers ($14 million dead cap).
“It’s fair to say this contract may not be enough in comparison to where the wideout position has risen to financially, but the cash flow and upfront guarantees easily make this a top-of-the-position contract.”
It’s no coincidence that as Aaron Rodgers contemplates his next step, the Packers lured a 68-year-old QB coach who’s one of Rodgers’ favorites out of retirement: https://t.co/tiNEgafLtU
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) February 18, 2022
It would be a stunning move for the Packers to let Adams hit the open market on March 16. They simply can’t afford to risk him signing with any team he pleases. There remains the possibility of a tag-and-trade, but that seems likely only if Rodgers doesn’t return. And that seems unlikely after the Packers hired one of Rodgers’ favorite coaches, Tom Clements, as their new quarterbacks coach, luring the 68-year-old out of retirement to return to the team he coached for 11 seasons (2006 through ’16).
If Rodgers returns, you can bet your life savings on the Packers bringing Adams back for him, at least for this season. Regardless of how it ends this offseason with the Packers’ two best players, we shouldn’t have to wait long for a resolution.
(Photo: Jeff Hanisch / USA Today)
Matt Schneidman is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Green Bay Packers. He is a proud alum of The Daily Orange student newspaper at Syracuse University. Follow Matt on Twitter @mattschneidman
