Davante Adams: 'No chance' for Packers extension before season

Things have changed since Davante Adams‘ contract last came up. Aaron Rodgers ended his holdout and reported to training camp on time. But the reigning MVP’s future is fuzzy beyond 2021. So is his top wide receiver’s.

The Packers and Adams still appear to be at a stalemate. The sides broke off talks in July, but Adams was open to restarting them. However, he and the Packers remain far apart on an extension. Adams said Wednesday there is “no chance” of a deal coming to pass before the start of the season, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com tweets.

Adams wants a deal that makes him the NFL’s highest-paid wideout. With DeAndre Hopkins‘ outlier $27M-per-year deal currently occupying that space, it is difficult to imagine Green Bay going there. The Packers could have Jordan Love‘s rookie contract to build around, but Rodgers dead money would remain on Green Bay’s cap in 2022 — in the event of a trade.

No deal being finalized before the season would not kill an arrangement to keep Adams in Wisconsin long-term. The Packers signed him to his current deal late in the 2017 season and have the franchise tag to deploy should this situation head to that point of the calendar. While the Packers have not used their tag since 2010, Adams could be worthy of a short-term fix.