NFL Rumors: Davante Adams roadblock, Patriots are shopping, McCaffrey return

The NFL trade deadline is a few short weeks away, and Davante Adams remains the best, most likely star player to be dealt at that time. While the New York Jets, New Orleans Saints and Pittsburgh Steelers have all expressed interest, they are not alone.

And who among us would want to eat money? According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Raiders “don’t want to eat any money, they would just like to just say bye to Adams and his contract,” meaning the Raiders don’t want to ship Adams off just to get him off the team, they also want to make sure they’re not taking a cap hit as well. Pelissero also said Las Vegas is looking for a “second-round pick and then some,” and that no offers are currently “pressing,” but that could easily change in the next few days.

Adams has played three games this season, recording 18 catches for 209 yards and one touchdown. Though he’s almost 32 years old, Adams still can break games open and perform at an All-Pro level, as he showed in his first two seasons with the Raiders, recording at least 100 catches in each.

Adams is currently nursing a hamstring injury that will keep him sidelined for the Raiders game against the Broncos in Week 5, but it mostly seems like an injury that will heal an awful lot quicker once he is traded elsewhere. Ian Rapoprt of NFL Network reported that Adams’ will likely “be healthy enough to play next week.”

Las Vegas is currently 2-2 with Pittsburgh and Los Angeles up on the schedule after Sunday’s contest against Denver, but it seems more likely each day that Adams has played his last down as a Raider.

At the time, the Jets remain the favorite to land Adams and reunite the star wideout with quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The duo was dominant for years in Green Bay, connecting on 76 touchdown passes, fifth-most ever between QB and WR. New York’s offense could use all the help it could get right now, as group headed by offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett is sputtering to start the season.

While Davante Adams trade talks have overtaken the NFL rumor mill, New England is shopping a wide receiver of their own, according to Jason La Confora of the Washington Post, who says the Patriots “have let it be known that Tyquan Thornton is available.”

Thornton certainly doesn’t bring the explosiveness or production that Adams does, but the 6-2 wide receiver out of Baylor may be worth buying low on for teams that desperately need depth in their receiver rooms.

New England drafted Thornton 50th overall in the 2022 Draft after he posted 2242 career receiving yards at Baylor, including 948 yards and 10 touchdowns his senior season. As a rookie in 2022, Thornton caught 22 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns, but has been a non-factor in New England’s offense since then. A change of scenery could be what Thornton needs to jump-start his career.

Though he is eligible to return in Week 6 after serving four weeks on injured reserve, 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey isn’t quite healthy enough to play and will miss San Francisco’s Week 6 matchup vs Seattle on Thursday Night Football, according to Pro Football Talk.

McCaffrey continues to recover from calf tightness and bilateral Achilles tendinitis — an injury most of us heard of for the first time when it was announced that McCaffrey had it — and 49ers fans will have to wait at least another week for his season debut. Injuries have been a problem for McCaffrey in the past, but the star running back had stayed healthy the past few seasons, playing 17 games in 2022 and 16 games in 2023.

San Francisco is currently 2-2 and the team has looked shaky through four weeks, posting wins against New England and New York, but faltering against Los Angeles and Minnesota. Backup running back Jordan Mason has played wonderfully in McCaffrey’s absence, topping 100 rushing yards in three of four games. Expect Mason to maintain a role in this offense even when C-Mac can take the field again. Even with Mason’s solid play, the 49ers are anxious for McCaffrey to return, as he completely changes the complexion of any offense he’s plugged into.

The injury updates from San Francisco haven’t been particularly encouraging thus far, but it sounds like McCaffrey is at least trending towards returning, potentially on October 20, when San Francisco takes on Kansas City in a Super Bowl rematch.