You know that friend who says exactly what everyone’s thinking, but nobody has the guts to say out loud? That’s Davante Adams right now. The former Green Bay Packers receiver didn’t just close the door on playing for the Chicago Bears. He welded it shut, set it on fire, and then posted the video online for good measure.
During a December 2024 sit-down on FanDuel TV’s “Up & Adams” show, host Kay Adams lobbed what seemed like a softball question: Would he ever consider suiting up for the Bears? Adams’ response came faster than a cornerback getting burned on a slant route.
“No. Never. Look, I’m not playing too much longer as it is, so on my last days in this league, after all I’ve been blessed with, I will not be going to Chicago.”
That’s not your typical “never say never” politician’s answer. That’s a man drawing a line in the turf and daring anyone to question it. And honestly? The internet had thoughts. Let’s break down why this moment resonated way beyond just another player talking smack.
What Adams Actually Said About Chicago
The full context makes it even worse for Bears fans who were already having a rough decade in the NFC North division.
Adams didn’t just say no to Chicago. He explained his reasoning with the kind of brutal honesty that <a href=”https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/davante-adams-emphatically-says-he-would-never-play-for-the-chicago-bears/”>CBS Sports captured in detail</a>. He painted a picture of what it was like being a Packer facing their oldest rivals during his Green Bay years from 2014 to 2021.
“Back in the day, being a Packer playing the Bears, we didn’t go into that game ever worrying about ‘are we gonna win the game?’ We were thinking about how crazy we were gonna go in the game.”
Read that again. The Packers weren’t game-planning to beat Chicago. They were planning their highlight reels, thinking about personal records instead of actual competition.
Then came the real gut punch that showed why Davante Adams takes a swipe at the Bears with such conviction and zero hesitation about his stance.
“Not to be disrespectful, it’s just naturally, as a Packer, you hate the Bears. And we have respect for every team we play, but you just don’t respect them to the level of a top-tier team.”
That’s the difference between competitive respect and polite acknowledgment. Adams respects the Bears the way you respect your little cousin at Thanksgiving touch football. Sure, you’ll play, but you’re not exactly worried.
The Numbers Behind Adams’ Dominance
Before you write this off as empty trash talk, let’s check the receipts that prove Adams had every right to feel confident against Chicago’s defense.
Adams absolutely cooked the Bears during his Packers tenure with production that made their secondary look completely lost on every route he ran against them.
Here’s how it breaks down across his career: 81 receptions for 1,024 yards and 10 touchdowns across 16 games against Chicago. That’s not just good. That’s “I’m using you for stat padding” good, and every Bears defensive coordinator knew it.
| Stat Category | Adams vs Bears | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Games Played | 16 | Nearly every matchup during his GB years |
| Receptions | 81 | Averaged 5+ catches per game consistently |
| Receiving Yards | 1,024 | Four games over 100 yards |
| Touchdowns | 10 | Scored in 10 different games |
| Team Record | 13-2 | Won over 85% of matchups |
That touchdown number hits different when you realize he was finding the end zone against Chicago more often than most receivers do against any opponent in their career.
The Bears’ secondary saw more of Adams celebrating than their own fans saw playoff wins during that entire stretch of NFL seasons together in the division.
<a href=”https://www.si.com/nfl/bears/news/davante-adams-savagely-shuts-down-idea-hed-play-for-ex-division-rival-chicago-bears-green-bay-packers”>Sports Illustrated noted</a> his overall 14-3 record against Chicago, which tells you everything about why he viewed those games as opportunities rather than challenges. When one team wins that consistently, it breeds the exact dismissive confidence Adams just displayed. His production wasn’t just contributing to wins—it was actively demoralizing an entire franchise.
Why the Rivalry Culture Created This Mindset
The Packers and Bears have been going at it since 1921, making it the NFL’s oldest rivalry with over 200 meetings between the two franchises.
But here’s the thing about old rivalries: they’re only interesting when both sides can actually compete at a comparable level throughout the season. For most of Adams’ time in Green Bay, that competitive balance simply didn’t exist between these two historic franchises.
The Aaron Rodgers era turned what should’ve been competitive division games into what felt like varsity versus JV scrimmages every single time they played. Remember Rodgers yelling “I still own you!” to Bears fans at Soldier Field? That wasn’t just trash talk or momentary emotion.
That was a man stating facts backed by a ridiculous win-loss record that nobody in Chicago could argue against with any legitimate statistical evidence whatsoever.
Adams absorbed that culture during his formative years alongside one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play the position in NFL history. He learned to view the Bears not as a legitimate threat but as a speed bump on the way to January football. That mindset doesn’t just disappear when you change jerseys or sign a new contract somewhere else.
The psychological edge in NFL rivalries matters more than most casual fans realize when watching games. When one team expects to win and the other shows up already defeated mentally, the outcome is basically predetermined before kickoff.
How Fans Reacted to the Comment
The internet did what the internet does best: picked sides and started swinging with hot takes from every possible angle imaginable.
Bears fans on Reddit and Twitter had mixed reactions ranging from anger to reluctant acceptance. Some were furious at what they saw as unnecessary disrespect toward a franchise with a rich history. Others admitted the painful truth that Adams’ comments reflected reality during those dark years.
A few even used it as motivation fuel, pointing to Caleb Williams and the team’s current rebuild as proof that things are changing for the better moving forward.
Packers fans loved every second of it and celebrated Adams all over social media. Finally, someone saying out loud what they’d been thinking for years about their biggest rival. Adams became an instant hero all over again in Wisconsin, even though he’s been gone since his 2022 trade.
The media analysis varied depending on which outlet covered the story. Some called it unnecessary and disrespectful toward an entire organization. Others praised his honesty in an era where players rarely speak their true feelings publicly.
What This Reveals About Player Identity
Here’s what makes this moment fascinating beyond just rivalry trash talk: Adams isn’t even a Packer anymore and still refuses to consider Chicago as a destination.
He played for the Las Vegas Raiders and currently suits up for the New York Jets alongside Aaron Rodgers once again. Yet when Davante Adams takes a swipe at the Bears, it comes from a place of deep-rooted identity formed during his best years. That Packers culture runs deeper than any contract or free agency decision ever could for certain players.
Think about it from his perspective as one of the league’s elite receivers with six Pro Bowl selections and multiple All-Pro nods to his name.
You’ve played with arguably the greatest quarterback of your generation. You’ve experienced sustained success and playoff runs. Why would you finish your career with a franchise you never took seriously as a competitive threat during your prime years?
That’s not about money or scheme fit. That’s about legacy and how you want to be remembered when your career ends. For Adams, putting on a Bears jersey would feel like betraying everything he built in Green Bay.
Julius Peppers famously went from Chicago to Green Bay and succeeded. But the reverse move for a Packers legend like Adams? Virtually unthinkable in today’s NFL landscape.
Can the Bears Change This Narrative
Adams’ comments reflect the past and present state of the rivalry, but what about Chicago’s future with new leadership and young talent coming in?
The Bears have the most exciting quarterback prospect they’ve had in generations with Caleb Williams under center. The defense has playmakers. There’s genuine optimism brewing in Chicago for the first time in years, and fans are finally believing again.
Can Williams and this new regime shift the perception? Can they make Soldier Field a place where elite free agents want to play instead of actively avoiding it like Adams just did? That’s the billion-dollar question facing the organization moving forward.
Winning changes everything in professional sports. Consistent contention erases old stigmas and negative perceptions. If the Bears start stacking wins, especially against Green Bay in divisional matchups, the narrative will shift dramatically.
But until that happens consistently over multiple seasons? When Davante Adams takes a swipe at the Bears, he’s giving voice to a perception that haunts the entire franchise and organization. For some of the game’s elite players, especially those forged in the fire of Packers success, Chicago isn’t just another team—it’s the team you simply don’t consider playing for under any circumstances.
What This Means for Football’s Oldest Rivalry
NFL rivalries create identities that stick with players long after they switch teams or even retire from professional football completely.
Adams’s complete refusal to consider Chicago while joining other struggling teams shows just how deeply these rivalries get under a player’s skin permanently. For fans on both sides, his comments add another memorable chapter to the Bears-Packers story that’s been building since the early days of professional football.
Whether you think Adams was just being honest or unnecessarily harsh probably depends entirely on which team you support every Sunday during football season. But one thing’s crystal clear: when Davante Adams takes a swipe at the Bears, it reminds us that emotions run way deeper than just what happens on game day. The rivalry lives on through every player who ever wore those colors in competition.
