The New Orleans Saints look to be the favorites in the NFC South this year as teams prepare for training camp. They made a big move earlier in the offseason, signing quarterback Derek Carr to shore things up under center.
With Carr in the mix, the Saints now have the most established quarterback situation in the division. The Carolina Panthers are turning to rookie No. 1 pick Bryce Young and the Atlanta Falcons are sticking with Desmond Ridder. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are figuring out life after Tom Brady and have a competition set between Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask.
The Saints are in a great spot, but if the opportunity presented itself to upgrade the roster even further, they would have to at least consider it. Never afraid to make a splash and kick their salary cap concerns down the line, could Davante Adams of the Las Vegas Raiders be a target for them?
Adams to New Orleans was a suggested trade of Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report to transform the league in 2023. The superstar wide receiver was just acquired by Las Vegas last year in part to reunite with Carr, who was his quarterback at Fresno State.
Carr has since been replaced by Jimmy Garoppolo, but his status for the season is up in the air. After having to undergo foot surgery the team didn’t know he needed, Adams hasn’t sounded thrilled about the situation with the Raiders.
“I’m going to have to buy into this and try to be as optimistic as possible,” he told Mirin Fader of The Ringer. “It’s not what I expected to happen, but it’s something that’s the reality now.”
If things don’t work out with Garoppolo, the relationship between Adams and the franchise could deteriorate. In the event of that occurring, the Saints would be a logical landing spot for him via trade.
What could a trade between the Saints and Raiders look like? Ballentine suggested New Orleans send a 2024 first-round pick and 2025 third-round pick to Las Vegas in exchange for Adams.
That is nearly the same package that the Raiders traded to the Green Bay Packers to acquire him, as it cost them a first and second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. Recouping that kind of draft capital would be ideal for Las Vegas, especially if things go off the rails with Garoppolo.
The Saints would then possess the best wide receiver trio in the NFL with Adams joining Chris Olave and Michael Thomas. That is an explosive group for Carr to work with alongside running backs Alvin Kamar and Jamaal Williams and tight end Juwan Johnson.
