"It's a possibility" - Packers GM believes franchise could be forced to let Davante Adams walk in free agency
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst spoke on Wednesday about the possibility of losing Davante Adams.
When asked if there was a chance that the Packers would let wide receiver Davante Adams walk in free agency, he responded in the affirmative.
"Yeah, possibly. There's a lot of things to be determined there," said Gutekunst.
Brian Gutekunst says he doesn’t like using the franchise tag and wants to extend Davante Adams. The situation is still in flux.
Is there a chance the Packers let Adams walk in free agency?
“Yeah, possibly. There’s a lot of things to be determined there.”
Gutekunst said on Wednesday that he wants to reach a long-term contract extension with Adams, and that the team would prefer that over using the franchise tag because they don't like using the tag on players.
On another front, Aaron Rodgers' Instagram post the other night created rumors that he could possibly be on his way out of Green Bay.
Since the offseason, everything seemed fine for the Packers and the status of Rodgers. Late Monday night, Rodgers posted a lengthy Instagram post thanking current and former teammates while refelcting upon his career in Green Bay.
In the last picture on the post, Rodgers posted a picture of teammates Randall Cobb and Davante Adams without him in it. During the national anthem, Rodgers always stands in between them, and the picture could have indicated that he won't be there with them next season.
Aaron Rodgers has stated in the past that if Adams wasn't there, he wouldn't want to return. With the Packers in cap space hell right now and with the likely chance of Rodgers not returning, Adams' chances of re-signing with the team are even less likely.
Although general manager Gutekunst has said they do not want to use the tag on Adams, they could still do it if they decide they really want him to stay. The Packers could also tag him as a tag-and-trade if they want to go that route.
Packers need to clear up cap space if they plan on keeping Davante Adams and Aaron Rodgers
The Packers are currently under the cap space with -$42 million. Before the new league year starts, they will have to get that number to zero. Early this morning, the franchise created $10.892 million in 2022 cap space by restructuring the contract of nose tackle Kenny Clark.
The Packers have created $10.892M in 2022 cap space by restructuring the contract of NT Kenny Clark, per source.
Green Bay converted $13.615 of Clark’s 2022 compensation into a signing bonus and added two void years to his deal.
Chipping away to create some space...
If Aaron Rodgers were to retire, it would free up about $26 million in cap space for the Packers. Players such as Za'Darius Smith, Preston Smith, Adrian Amos, Billy Turner, Aaron Jones, Madon Crosby, etc. could all take pay cuts or restructure their current contracts to get the team under the limit.