Bill Kostroun/New York Post

Davante Adams said this week he was happy about the trade that sent him to the Jets, partly because “everybody can kind of move on.” In retrospect, moving on was a little difficult for both the wide receiver and the Raiders.

Antonio Pierce publicly criticized at least one Raiders player for making “business decisions” in a home loss to the Panthers Sept. 22 and, eight days later, the head coach “liked” a report claiming the Raiders would trade Adams. The All-Pro receiver, meanwhile, didn’t play with an apparent hamstring injury over his final three games with the organization, before the elixir of the Fountain of Youth may have healed the ailment.

But push all that aside and let this marinate. According to Josh Dubow from the Associated Press, over the past 20 seasons, the Raiders have traded first-round picks for Randy Moss, Richard Seymour, Carson Palmer and Adams, and never made the playoffs with any of those players. Prior to the 2022 season, the Raiders sent first- and second-round selections to Green Bay and reportedly gave Adams a five-year, $140 million contract. ESPN sources said the Jets will pay the balance of Adams’ remaining gamechecks.

History says Jets fans shouldn’t be making reservations for the playoffs, either. Dubow researched 35 instances over that period in which one team traded a first-round selection for a veteran and eight times the team failed to reach the playoffs with the veteran still on the roster. In addition to the four Raiders trades, that group includes the Buccaneers and Darrelle Revis, the Colts and Carson Wentz, the Cardinals and Marquise Brown and the Broncos and Russell Wilson.

Incidentally, Seymour joined Tom Brady as a minority Raiders owner on Tuesday, one of the most newsworthy days in recent NFL memory. Owner Mark Davis said the team essentially traded Adams for Brady.

Adams heads to Pittsburgh for Sunday Night Football (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC) against the Steelers, who ironically are dealing with their own dysfunction this week. Earlier in the day, the Raiders (2-4) play their first official game without Adams in their former home, Los Angeles, against the Rams (1-4) at SoFi Stadium (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS).


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By Zak Gilbert

Since his freshman year at the University of Colorado, Zak has worked 30 years in sports, including 18 NFL seasons. He's spent time with four NFL teams, serving as head of communications for both the Raiders and Browns. A veteran of nine Super Bowls, he most recently worked six seasons in the NFL's New York league office.

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