Aaron Rodgers’ former go-to receiver says NFL star has ‘Michael Jordan effect’ on his teammates

Davante Adams doesn’t have to worry about his chemistry with Packers star quarterback Aaron Rodgers anymore after Adams was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders. He has veteran Derek Carr under center and throwing him passes now. 

But that doesn’t mean Adams won’t comment on his former signal-caller’s effect on players. Adams spoke on “The Pivot” podcast and likened Rodgers to NBA legend Michael Jordan, saying his presence alone has a positive effect on other players. 

That comment came after it was brought up that Rodgers didn’t believe his presence at voluntary practices before training camp had much impact. 

Adams begs to differ. 

“You’re obviously gonna run a little harder [if] your coach is watching you. So it was kind of that type of effect, and he made me a better player out of that, because the consistency came from that,” Adams explained. 

“It wasn’t the same as when Aaron is out there.” 

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Time will tell if Rodgers can find a new receiver to be in sync with. 

It won’t be the same this season for Rodgers now that Adams, his favorite target the last several years, isn’t in Green Bay. Throughout his time with the Packers, Adams collected 669 receptions for 8,121 yards and 73 receiving touchdowns in 116 games. It can be argued that no other quarterback-receiver combo was as lethal as these two in recent years. 

But Adams requested a trade this offseason following the Packers’ loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC playoffs’ divisional round. And the Raiders gave up their first- and second-round picks in this year’s NFL Draft to land the All-Pro receiver.

As it stands, Rodgers is now working with Allen Lazard, who figures to be the top target, and veterans Sammy Watkins and Randall Cobb, who returned to the Packers during the 2021 season to reunite with Rodgers. In 2014, Cobb was a favorite for Rodgers while Adams was breaking in as a rookie, racking up 1,287 yards with 12 touchdowns. 

As for Adams, he’s working on his connection with Carr in training camp while Carr has been dealing with a certain Tom Brady-based rumor coming from UFC President Dana White. White said during a UFC broadcast Saturday that he had a grand plan to bring Brady and Rob Gronkowski to the Raiders before then-head coach Jon Gruden rejected the idea. 

Adams said early on in training camp that he believes Carr can be a Hall of Fame quarterback. 

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“Any time you change quarterbacks from a Hall of Famer to a Hall of Famer, Stabler to Rich Gannon or whoever you go to, it’ll definitely be a little bit of an adjustment,” Adams said in an interview with CBS Sports. 

The Raiders kick off their 2022-23 campaign against the AFC West rival Los Angeles Chargers in Week 1. 

Rodgers will lead his Packers against an NFC North foe, the Minnesota Vikings, for their first game on the road.