Until the Raiders made the big splash and acquired Davante Adams in trade with the Packers. They were seen as falling way behind in the competitive AFC West.
The Broncos added Russell Wilson to a team that already boasted a top defense while the Chargers acquired Khalil Mack and signed JC Jackson to bulk up their defensive unit. And the Chiefs are still the Chiefs.
Adams knows he’s entering the best division in football and sees a challenge in that.
“This is the best division in football right now. It would be hard not to say that even if I was still in Green Bay right now,” Adams said Tuesday. “It’s loaded. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s definitely something I’m looking forward to. I’m always looking for a challenge. The Chargers added a few more pieces, obviously, we’re stacked over here, so it’s exciting to see what’s ahead. I’m looking forward to it.”
Receiving corps in the AFC West have been strong for a while now. The Chargers have the top wide receiver duo in Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, while the Broncos have Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy. But it’s the Chiefs that have led the way with the trio of Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, and Mecole Hardman.
Now, the Raiders can boast of a strong trio of their own in Adams, Darren Waller, and Hunter Renfrow.
“You can kind of pick your poison,” Adams said of the Raiders’ offensive weapons. “I was just talking to [running back] Josh [Jacobs] and said you kind of run into the situation that the Chiefs have now, who are you gonna double? You gonna double Tyreek [Hill]? Well, 200 is going to [Travis] Kelce. You gonna double Kelce? Then you already know how that’s going to go in Tyreek’s hands. So, pick your poison and it will be anybody’s day.
“I’m a secure wide receiver, so at the end of the day, I know what I bring. I told Derek [Carr], don’t feel any pressure to force me the ball or nothing, you don’t have to try to please the media, please anybody, let’s just go out there and do this thing like how we did before. Put together a pretty good resume in college together. This ain’t college, but we still got that connection, so I’m looking forward to putting it on display.”
Adams is talking about the 233 catches for over 3000 yards and 38 touchdowns he had in two seasons with Derek Carr at Fresno State.
As Adams said ‘this ain’t college, but he has more than proven himself as one of the best receivers in the NFL.
Likewise, Darren Waller has earned his respect as one of the best tight ends in the league and Hunter Renfrow as one of the league’s top slot receivers. These things are not in question. And if opposing defenses try to take any of them out of the game, the other two will thrive.
Having a ‘pick-your-poison’ is always the goal of any offense. But for the Raiders, the stars have rarely aligned for it to happen. It would appear they have now. Even before we know who the third starting wide receiver is going to be.
