The New York Jets have signed wide receiver Davante Adams in a trade from the Las Vegas Raiders, reuniting him with star quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Adams, 31, spent eight seasons playing alongside future Hall of Famer Rodgers at the Green Bay Packers, who helped him become one of the best receivers in the NFL.
The Jets were banking on four-time MVP Rodgers, 40, spearheading a Super Bowl bid this season but they have lost three in row, slipping to 2-4 after a 23-20 home loss to divisional rivals the Buffalo Bills.
That defeat was the Jets’ first game since sacking head coach Robert Saleh and they are now third in the AFC East, behind the Miami Dolphins (2-3) and the Bills, who lead the division on 4-2.
They will hope that six-time Pro Bowler Adams can rekindle his spark with Rodgers, from whom he has caught 622 passes and 69 touchdowns.
The Raiders will reportedly receive a conditional third-round draft pick in exchange for Adams, which can become a second-round pick based on the receiver’s performance in New York.
The Jets have also agreed to take on the rest of his salary – Adams is in the middle of the third season on a five-year, $140m (£107m) contract signed in 2022.
He enjoyed a career-best season playing with Rodgers in 2020, totalling 1,374 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns.
In March 2022, Adams was traded to the Raiders and 13 months later Rodgers was traded to the Jets.
In three games this season Adams has 18 receptions for 209 yards and one touchdown, but he has not featured since a week-three defeat to the Carolina Panthers due to a hamstring injury.
In other trade news, the Bills acquired veteran wideout Amari Cooper from the Cleveland Browns.
The Bills will receive the six-time Pro Bowl receiver, 30, and a sixth-round draft pick in 2025 in exchange for a third-round pick in 2025 and a seventh-rounder in 2026.
Cooper, who also played for the then-Oakland Raiders and the Dallas Cowboys, has seven 1,000-yard seasons in his career and gives Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen a marquee receiver to replace the departed Stefon Diggs, who was traded to the Houston Texans in April.
