Davante Adams, Raiders shake up free agency with big trade

Updated Mar. 17, 2022 8:26 p.m. ET

Associated Press

Keeping pace in the AFC West is turning into quite the arms race, and now it's the Las Vegas Raiders' turn to try and one-up the rest of the division.

The

A person familiar with the move said the Raiders are sending the No. 22 overall pick in the April draft and additional compensation to the Packers to reunite Adams with his college quarterback, Derek Carr. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because the deal hadn’t been announced.

NFL Network reported that Adams has agreed to a new five-year deal with the Raiders that will pay him $141.25 million in the richest deal ever for a wide receiver.

That easily overshadowed other moves Thursday involving receivers with Cole Beasley and Julio Jones looking for new teams, Allen Robinson and DJ Chark switching teams or even quarterback Baker Mayfield demanding to be traded, not happy the Browns tried to replace him with Deshaun Watson.

And oh yeah, everyone's waiting to see what happens next with Watson despite his off-field legal issues and sitting out the 2021 season.

The Raiders, under new management, tried to match Denver's trade for quarterback Russell Wilson and the Chargers' acquisition of edge rusher Khalil Mack. Carr now has another offensive weapon and lots of history with Adams after they played two seasons together at Fresno State.

Robinson is a big winner, going from Chicago to the Rams and becoming teammates with Cooper Kupp and quarterback Matthew Stafford.

The deal with one of the NFL’s most dependable and veteran pass-catchers gives the Rams someone who had 2,397 yards and 13 touchdowns combined in the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Robinson was limited by injuries to 12 games last season when he caught 38 passes for 410 yards.

The

Beasley had been given permission to seek a trade with one year left on his contract, but the Bills cut their top slot receiver to free up salary cap space a day after signing two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year Von Miller to a six-year contract.

Chark said other teams wanted to give a long-term deal to the former Pro Bowl receiver who was limited to four games last season in Jacksonville by a broken ankle.

A person familiar with the discussions says

The Browns told Mayfield they aren’t trading him.

in another cost-cutting move involving a starter on offense. Collins will be designated as a post-June 1 cut in a salary cap-saving move netting $10 million later this year.

Others released Thursday as post-June 1 designations were defensive tackle Fletcher Cox of Philadelphia and Cleveland tight end Austin Hooper. The Giants released

The Green Bay

The New York

The Jets signed

Safety Justin Reid signed his three-year, $31.5 million free-agent contract with Kansas City on Thursday,

The Atlanta Falcons have

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