Davante Adams 'Signed Off' on Raiders Benching Jimmy Garoppolo for Aidan O'Connell

Before Jimmy Garoppolo was benched last season, the Las Vegas Raiders consulted Davante Adams to get his opinion about the move.

On the Netflix documentary series Receiver, Adams explained how he "signed off" on the move to bench Garoppolo for rookie Aidan O'Connell.

"Well my opinion on that, was I signed off on that. And that's just the reality of it," Adams said. "You know, I love Jimmy and he's a great guy, but something had to happen in order for us to have a chance down the stretch and in order for me to remain a Raider, in all honesty."

There was some assumption that Adams was saying he was going to be traded if Garoppolo kept playing. While that may have been one potential option, his actual comment strongly suggests the quarterback switch was more about winning games than anything else.

Adams was the subject of trade rumors leading up to the deadline during the 2023 season. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in November the New York Jets tried to acquire the six-time Pro Bowler.

The Raiders signed Garoppolo as a free agent in March 2023 after releasing Derek Carr. Garoppolo started six of the first eight games before being benched on Oct. 31. He was leading the NFL with nine interceptions and took 13 sacks prior to his benching.

Garoppolo's benching came after a game against the Detroit Lions in which he missed Adams on two wide-open passes that could have gone for significant gains, possibly even touchdowns.

The decision to bench Garoppolo came at the same time as the Raiders fired head coach Josh McDaniels and replaced him with Antonio Pierce.

Both moves worked out well for the Raiders. They won five of their final nine games after a 3-5 start, including a 20-14 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on Christmas Day.

The vibes from Adams and the Raiders certainly got better once McDaniels was fired. Adams was very open about his desire for Pierce to get the full-time job after being the interim coach last season.

Adams' numbers didn't shift that much from the Garoppolo-McDaniels tandem to the Pierce-O'Connell pairing. He had 47 receptions, 539 yards and three touchdowns in the first eight games. He finished the season with 56 catches, 605 yards and five touchdowns over the final nine games.