Could the Raiders end up keeping Davante Adams?
After Wednesday’s press conference with head coach Antonio Pierce, it certainly sounds like Adams may have re-considered things since last week’s report that he requested a trade.
Even Pierce’s mood was a lot different in addressing Adams’s situation.
“He’s still a Raider. He’s never not been a Raider,” Pierce told members of the media on Wednesday afternoon.
“When he’s healthy and he can play, we’ll play him,” Pierce continued. “He’s just not healthy right now and he’s getting closer, though. That’s the good part. He’s working every day to get that hamstring right. He’s in the right head space mentally. We talked recently, had a good conversation, and he’s ready to play football.”
Maybe it was the fact that calamity struck the two organizations he was interested in playing for, but for now, it sounds like Adams isn’t going anywhere.
At the very least, it might be wise for Adams to see how the season shakes out a little more before going all-in on an organization that might be well under a .500 record around the trade deadline.
For what it’s worth, Yahoo and FOX Sports radio host Jason Fitz has been saying for weeks that he doesn’t think the Raiders will trade Davante Adams.
This week, he doubled down on that stance, despite all the noise around Adams’s preferred trade destinations.
“I’m dying on this hill. Everyone says I’m crazy. Even people within the Raiders organization that I trust,” Fitz said on the Gojo and Golic Show.
“I don’t think the value is going to be there,” Fitz continued. “It’s a tough pill to swallow to think about what we’re hearing… the fact that the [Raiders] want a second-rounder and that feels rich to the rest of the league. How do you feel about letting Davante go in the middle of the season… some people have told me off the record it looks like a fourth-rounder. A fourth-rounder and a conditional are what teams want to offer. Why would you let Davante go for that?”
In the latest report from ESPN on Wednesday, it sounds like the Raiders have every intention to sticking to their asking price on Adams.
“The Raiders have told at least one team involved in a potential trade they don’t plan to front any of the bill on his $16.89 million salary,” ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler reported on Wednesday morning. “Perhaps negotiations change that, but that has been the perceived stance from Las Vegas.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter added this morning that a trade for Adams is unlikely this week, and he believes it will come next week at the earliest.
x: @raidersbeat