Grade the source: A rumored Davante Adams trade destination would make Packers fans cry

The NFL offseason is generally driven by one universally enticing question: what if?

With training camp on the horizon, most rosters around the league are set. There are still a few stragglers working through significant issues, though. The San Francisco 49ers recently received an official trade request from top wideout Brandon Aiyuk, who has endured an entire summer of bullish, inflexible contract negotiations with John Lynch and the front office.

San Francisco isn't immediately inclined to trade Aiyuk, but this is a sizable distraction for a team that reached the Super Bowl a few months ago. Ideally, the Niners would get this in the rearview mirror sooner than later, allowing the team to look ahead and work toward a common goal.

Aiyuk is going to skip camp and cause a stir until he is dealt. The Washington Commanders, Pittsburgh Steelers, and New England Patriots have all been connected to the 26-year-old at various points, but other potential sleepers exist. One such team is the Las Vegas Raiders.

Raiders head coach Antonio Piece worked alongside Aiyuk at Arizona State once upon a time. There's a connection there, and Aiyuk would give Las Vegas a tier-one playmaker a little more closely aligned with their retooling timeline. The goal is to win this season, but with Aidan O'Connell slated to start under center, the Raiders are in a transitional period. Davante Adams, the current No. 1 wideout, is 31 years old with no guaranteed money on his contract beyond the 2024 campaign. Aiyuk is a natural replacement.

One would expect Aiyuk and Adams to team up in the short term if the Raiders pull off a blockbuster trade with their west-coast rivals. But no, according to the latest (unconfirmed) rumor from Twitter user @prettyrickey213, whose bio includes the phrase "the people's NFL insider." The link was posted on reddit, as said user has apparently broken NFL news previously, including when they heard rumblings about the Trevor Lawrence contract.

Wild NFL 'rumor' connected Brandon Aiyuk to Raiders, Davante Adams to 49ers

Now we are officially cooking with gasoline, folks.

Do I believe this has the remotest chance of happening? No. Until it comes from Adam Schefter or a comparable source, it's best to take these "rumors" with a grain of salt. Especially with no prior evidence to connect the dots.

Davante Adams has reaffirmed his loyalty to Las Vegas (and to Antonio Pierce) on countless occasions at this point. Aaron Rodgers begged him to join the Jets and Adams dropped a polite "no, dude." Even with non-guaranteed salary beyond this season, Adams is one of the best wideouts in football. If the Raiders can compete this fall, Las Vegas probably pays him — eagerly.

At his apex, Adams is still on the shortlist of top wideouts in the NFL. Aiyuk is the real deal, but he's not on the Davante Adams level. As a 1-2 punch, Adams and Aiyuk would form a glorious foundation to revamp the Raiders' offense. A one-for-one WR swap, however, is a bit less appealing.

The Raiders do get younger with Aiyuk and, in theory, get more long-term security. The Niners take the long-term loss, but get a season with Davante Adams to go all-out for the Super Bowl. Adams, Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, and Deebo Samuel is one heck of a playmaking corps to put around the up-and-coming Brock Purdy.

This is a totally wild and entertaining concept, but it's hard to fathom and there's too much downside risk for both sides. The Niners clearly don't want to invest long-term money is a wide receiver right now. Paying Adams would be out of the question. The Raiders reunite Aiyuk and Pierce — the vibes are immaculate — but Aiyuk represents a short-term downgrade and a lot more guaranteed money on the books.

Ultimately, it's we're grading this for take/rumor artistry, it's A+. No notes. If we are grading this in terms of plausibility, however, it's a bit further down the totem pole.

Grade: D, and we're being generous