Star wide receiver Davante Adams hasn’t been part of the Bears-Packers rivalry in years, but the vitriol is still there.
Adams, who was reunited with ex-Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the Jets this season, scorched the Bears this week on an appearance on the “Up & Adams” show and said he’d rather retire than play for them.
“On my last days in this league, after all I’ve been blessed with, I will not be going to Chicago,” he said. “I respect everyone I play, but I’m not playing for the Bears, no.”
Adams is a three-time All-Pro who built most of his Hall of Fame-worthy career with the Packers from 2014 through ’21. The Packers went 14-2 against the Bears in that stretch, and Adams lit them up with 81 catches for 1,024 yards and 10 touchdowns in those games.
He’s still laughing about it.
“Playing the Bears, we didn’t worry, ‘Are we going to win the game?’ ” Adams said. “We were thinking about how crazy we were going to go: ‘Can I set a record? Can I score twice?’ It was like that type of feel.
“Not to be disrespectful, but it’s just naturally, as a Packers player, you hate the Bears. We have respect for every team you play. You just don’t respect them [as] a top-tier team that can compete with us. We went into it ready to steamroll them and hopefully have the best game of the year.”
He also pointed out that the Packers, who are closing in on their 13th playoff appearance in 16 seasons, have long been “a winning organization, and the Bears haven’t. They’ve been on the other side of that for so long.”
The Bears are 4-10 heading into their game against the Lions on Sunday and haven’t had a winning season since 2018.