When Davante Adams departed the Green Bay Packers for the Las Vegas Raiders in a blockbuster trade in March 2022, quarterback Jordan Love was entering his third full offseason of backing up quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
The 2020 first-round pick hadn’t received his chance to shine just yet.
After the trade, Adams immediately signed a five-year contract with the Raiders, giving a vote of confidence to his future with then-Las Vegas quarterback Derek Carr over uncertainty surrounding the Packers’ situation under center.
Just over two years later, Carr is in New Orleans, Rodgers is with the New York Jets, and Love looks like one of the NFL’s best young quarterbacks in Green Bay.
Adams made it clear that he doesn’t regret leaving Green Bay, but he admitted he was a bit surprised with Love’s rapid rise in 2023.
“At the time when I was [in Green Bay], I hadn’t necessarily seen enough to say this is for sure what I should do,” Adams said of his decision to leave Green Bay on The Rush With Maxx Crosby podcast. “But in hindsight—the kid is a f—ing baller, man. I’m so happy for him.
“I haven’t really had a chance to truly sit down and talk with him, but I want to tell him at some point like, ‘I definitely don’t regret changing [teams], but I’m super proud of what you’ve done. If there’s a way I could pull you over [to Las Vegas] and drag you with me, that would’ve been cool too.'”
Love struggled a bit early in 2023—his first campaign as the Packers’ full-time starting quarterback—but he turned it around in Week 8. Over the last 10 regular-season games, Love led the Packers to seven wins while throwing 21 touchdowns and just three interceptions.
The Packers punched a ticket to the postseason and upset the Dallas Cowboys 48–32 in the wild-card round. Love nearly led Green Bay to a shocking win the following week over the San Francisco 49ers but fell short in the final minute.
“Obviously, we saw what he did at the end of the year,” Adams said. “I don’t regret what I did. But at the same time, you look back and you’re like, ‘Damn, that boy got a ball!'”
Adams and the Raiders enter the 2024 season with a big question mark at quarterback. Aidan O’Connell didn’t exactly run away with the starting job as a rookie, and Gardner Minshew has proven to provide a better spark as a backup than a full-time starter.
Meanwhile, Love enters the 2024 season looking to build off his promising 2023 campaign. The Packers are expected to compete for the NFC North crown.
“He’s starting to come into his own,” Adams said of Love. “The way he’s talking in front of media and everything—he’s just like a whole different person than what I saw when I was there. And that comes with experience.”
