Report: Jets continue overhaul, release star WR Adams

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Three weeks after parting with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the New York Jets are releasing his favorite wide receiver, Davante Adams, a source told ESPN on Tuesday.

The Jets also have given permission to wide receiver Allen Lazard -- another Rodgers favorite -- to seek a trade before the start of the league year on March 12, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter. In all likelihood, he, too, will end up being released.

The Jets are undoing what they did two years ago, when they went all-in for Rodgers by acquiring some of his former Green Bay Packers teammates.

The Adams move comes as no surprise, as he was due to count $38.3 million on the salary cap -- a 2025 league high for wide receivers. That includes $35.6 million in non-guaranteed base salary, the contract they inherited last October when they acquired Adams from the Las Vegas Raiders for a 2025 third-round pick.

By cutting Adams, the Jets received major cap relief, clearing $29.9 million from this year's cap -- more than doubling their previous cap room. This will allow them to be aggressive in free agency, though it's not a clean break from Adams. There is an $8.4 million dead charge, the prorated renegotiation bonus he received upon being traded to the Jets.

The only logical way to have kept the still-productive Adams was to renegotiate his contract, and that never seemed like a real possibility. He strongly suggested at the end of the season that his future with the team was tied to Rodgers. They tried to trade him, but the contract was immovable.

The Jets' new regime -- head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey -- is shedding all remnants from the Rodgers era, which ended last season with a 5-12 record and triggered an organizational reboot.

Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, Rodgers' close friend, also is gone. And now Lazard's days are numbered; it's unlikely that a team will trade for his $11 million salary (non-guaranteed). His release, or trade, would create another $6.6 million in cap relief.

The Jets were 2-4 at the time of the Adams trade, a desperation move in an attempt rekindle the Rodgers-Adams magic from their years with the Packers. As it turned out, they went 3-8 with Adams.

After a slow start, Adams came on strong toward the end of the season and finished with 67 catches, 854 yards and seven touchdowns in 11 games for the Jets. Combined with his Las Vegas production, he went over 1,000 yards for the fifth straight year. His signature performance was a nine-catch, 198-yard performance in a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Adams' departure leaves Garrett Wilson, a three-time, 1,000-yard receiver, as the clear-cut No. 1. He had that distinction at the start of last season, but the roles became blurred when Adams arrived.

It became obvious to some players that Rodgers was favoring Adams over Wilson in the passing game. In 11 games together, Adams was targeted 112 times (third-most in the NFL), Wilson 87. The disparity was even greater in the red zone -- Adams 21, Wilson 11.

It fueled speculation that Wilson, whose relationship with Rodgers was tense at times, might ask for a trade. But the chances of that happening were greatly reduced by Rodgers' ouster.

Presuming Lazard's ouster, the Jets are very thin at receiver. Aside from Wilson, their top holdovers are Xavier Gipson (27 career receptions) and Malachi Corley (three).

Adams has 957 career receptions, fourth among active players. He spent his first eight years with Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers before being traded to the Raiders in 2022.

Before finalizing the trade for Rodgers in April 2023, the Jets signed Lazard to a four-year, $44 million contract. They also added Randall Cobb, another Packers receiver who has since retired. The hope was to make themselves more attractive to Rodgers -- and it worked.

In two seasons, Lazard, 29, made only 60 receptions for 841 yards and two touchdowns. He struggled in 2023 and wound up getting benched. He rebounded with a strong start last season, but eventually lost playing time to Adams, who moved into an immediate starting role after his trade.