Davante Adams, a two-time All Pro receiver, will be tagged by the Green Bay Packers to stop him from being an unrestricted agent.
After MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers said he was returning to Green Bay for an 18th season, the Packers made the decision Tuesday.
Adams would have been available to any team if the Packers had not tagged him or extended his contract. Adams will be free to sign when the free agency period opens on March 16.
Adams and the Packers have until July 15th to reach a long-term agreement. Adams would be playing this season for less than $20 million if they fail to reach an agreement. A player’s franchise tender tender is the average of five salaries at the position, $18.4million for receivers, or 120% of his salary from the previous season. In Adams’ case, the player gets the greater amount.
Adams could negotiate with other teams using the non-exclusive tag. However, the Packers could match any offer and, if they did, they would get two draft picks in the first round.
Brian Gutekunst, Packers general manager, had stated last month that he would prefer to not use the tag on Adams.
Gutekunst stated that it was a tool that was made available to him. We will use it if we have to. We would love to reach an agreement sooner, but it is a tool that allows you to protect one your top players. However, we know that this is not possible. We want to exhaust all possibilities before we reach that point.
Adams was also not happy with the idea of being tagged late in the season.
Adams stated that Adams was unsure how Adams would answer the question safely. “So, we’ll just get over that bridge when it opens. That’s all I will say. “I like to be professional here.”
Adams, 29 years old, has been awarded All-Pro honors in each of his two previous seasons. He was also unanimously selected for 2021. Adams, 29, set single-season Packers records for receiving yards (1,553) and catches (123) as well as scoring 11 touchdowns.
He is the only NFL player to have at least 110 receptions, 1,350 yards receiving, and 11 touchdown receptions in three seasons. Adams joins Marvin Harrison, Larry Fitzgerald and Larry Fitzgerald as the only two players to have 600 catches and 8,000 yards receiving. They also had 70 touchdown receptions in their first eight seasons.
There are still many issues that the Packers need to address in their receiving department. Marquez Valdes–Scantling and Equanimeous Brown, as well as tight end Robert Tonyan, are all unrestricted agents. Allen Lazard can be contacted as a restricted agent.
