Kurt Warner and his agent must have read my latest column because apparently the free agent quarterback is on the verge of re-signing with the Arizona Cardinals according to ESPN.com. If the deal is completed, Warner is expected to receive $23 million over the next two years.

On Monday I speculated that Warner wouldn’t re-up with the Cards after making a free agent stop in San Francisco to talk with the 49ers. I concluded that with the departure of Todd Haley and the eventual/possible trade of Anquan Boldin, Warner might soon jettison as well.

Uh, not so much.

- Eagles’ running back Brian Westbrook underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee over a month ago according to the Philadelphia Daily News. The procedure was apparently a routine “cleanup� and already has recovered.

- The Cardinals have upped the ante in an attempt to keep quarterback Kurt Warner in Arizona. The Cards increased their contract offer from $20 million to $23 million over two years. Warner’s visit to San Fran must have spooked the ‘Zona front office.

- The Bucs signed running back Derrick Ward to a four-year, $17 million contract with $6 million in guarantees. Will this signing cost Cadillac Williams a roster spot?

- The Chargers are reportedly shopping cornerback Antonio Cromartie according to the San Diego-Tribune. The Bolts want to sign free agent Drayton Florence and already have Antoine Cason and Quentin Jammer as starters, which means there isn’t much room for Cromartie.

- The Titans upgraded their receiving corps with the addition of wideout Nate Washington, formerly of the Super Bowl champion Steelers. Washington is coming off a nice season and at 25, has a lot of football ahead of him. The Titans drastically needed to add offensive talent and this was a good start.

Even though we’re not even a week into the NFL free agency period, there is still plenty to talk about. Below are three free agency moves that made sense, three that didn’t and three that have yet to happen.

Three moves that made sense:

1. The Giants beefing up their defense with the signings of Canty, Boley and Bernard.
Two years ago, New York befuddled a previously unbeaten Patriots team in Super Bowl XLIII with a constant barrage of pressure from its defensive front four. With that in mind, GM Jerry Reese decided to add more talent to his front seven this offseason with the signings of Chris Canty, Rocky Bernard and Michael Boley. Canty and Bernard will beef up the interior of the Giants’ defensive line by adding both size and strength, as well as hopefully boost the production of Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora on the outside. Not too many people have heard of Boley, but before he got lost in the shuffle last year in Atlanta, he was on his way to a promising career. Surrounded by the right talent and given the opportunity to play to his strengths in the right system, Boley could become a Pro Bowler someday and eventually excel in New York. They still have to figure out what to do with Plaxico Burress, but thanks to the signings of these three defensive players (coupled with the sensible deal the team signed running back Brandon Jacobs to), the Giants have had one of the best offseasons of any team in the league.

The defending NFC Champion Cardinals are offering quarterback Kurt Warner over $10 million a year to stay in Arizona.

Warner, whose accurate arm and flair for the passing game helped carry the Cardinals to their first Super Bowl appearance, is hoping to land a contract offer that would reflect that he is a top five quarterback. Top five quarterbacks make between $14 million and $16 million a year. The Cardinals, according to a source, are believed to be offering between $10 million and $12 million a year.

Warner threw for 4,583 yards and 30 touchdowns last season, completing 401 of 598 passes (67.1 percent).

Both sides have until Thursday night to reach a deal or he will be an unrestricted free agent starting Friday.

The only team with more cap space in the NFL right now than the Cardinals is the Buccaneers, so money isn’t an issue. It’s highly unlikely Warner hits the open market.

- According to Kurt Warner’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, the free agent quarterback will not retire this offseason and is likely to play in 2009. The chances of Warner returning to Arizona are very high, regardless of what happens with receiver Anquan Boldin.

- The Raiders cut three players on Friday evening, including safety Gibril Wilson, who was given a six-year, $39 million contract by Oakland just one season ago. The Raiders also cut wide receiver Ronald Curry and defensive end Kalimba Edwards.

- The Saints offered a second-round tender on restricted free agent wide receiver Lance Moore, who is likely to return to New Orleans next season.

- The Dolphins have agreed to terms with right tackle Vernon Carey on a six-year, $42 million contract. The Bears were reportedly one of the teams interested in Carey if he hit the open market.

- The Jets released tight end Chris Baker before he was due a $9 million roster bonus on March 5. The team could still re-sign him at a cheaper price, although with Dustin Keller already on the roster, bringing back Baker isn’t a must.

Although Arizona Republic contributor Kent Somers writes that Kurt Warner and the Cardinals could begin discussing a new contract as early as this week, he also doesn’t squash the idea that Warner could still retire this offseason.

I think it’s a mistake, however, to view that as a definitive sign that Warner isn’t retiring. Warner has said there are a number of factors to consider in making the decision, and I think he’ll weigh all of them before making a commitment.

Warner has said several times that one of the most important factors will be how interested the Cardinals are in having him back. And there’s no better way to gauge that interest than seeing what the team is willing to offer in a new contract. That’s what Bartelstein is doing now. It would be silly for Warner to say he wants to play again, only to find the Cardinals are offering far below what he thinks is fair.

Another factor in Warner’s decision will be assessing the team’s determination to keep its core of talented players. He is also curious about Ken Whisenhunt’s plans for the offensive coaching staff. Warner was close with coordinator Todd Haley, now the Chiefs coach. Jeff Rutledge, the quarterbacks coach, has been fired. How Whisenhunt fills those spots will factor in Warner’s decision. It might not be a huge part of it, given that Whisenhunt is going to call plays, but it will have an impact.

Money, too, will play a part. Warner and his wife Brenda do a lot of charity work through their foundation, First Things First, and he’s told me before that he won’t have problems staying busy in retirement. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him on television, either. But there’s nowhere else he can make the kind of money the Cardinals likely will pay him — $8 million to $10 million a year.

Even with all the potential factors that Somers highlighted in his article, I think we’ll see Warner back in a Cardinal uniform for at least another year. It has to be tough for a player to taste another Super Bowl, not win it and then retire in the offseason, especially when it’s a top competitor like Warner. I bet we see a deal get done early in the free agency period.

Despite the recent talk that he could retire this offseason, it looks like Kurt Warner will return next year as the starting quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals.

He will be back. And he likely will sign a new, two-year contract extension – possibly in the neighborhood of $18-20 million – to try and lead this once-woebegone franchise right back into glorious history.

Give it two weeks, three weeks tops.

That was the word circulating through the Warner camp before and following the Cardinals’ 27-23 loss to the Steelers in Tampa. And unless management completely drops the ball and short-changes the quarterback at the negotiating table, it’s appears to be a done deal.

Still, Warner would make no such public assumptions. He did say on Tuesday he wants to finish his career with the Cardinals.

“That’s my mindset,” he said. “If I’m going to keep playing, I don’t want to change teams.”

Outside of Anquan Boldin and Todd Haley’s possible departures, Arizona is the perfect place for Warner. He benefits playing in a dome eight times a year because his arm strength is fading fast, he knows the offense and he has a multitude of weapons at his disposal. At this point in his career, he can’t be the guy anymore but he can obviously be very effective in the right situation. And the Cardinals are definitely the right situation for him.

The National Football Post is reporting that Kurt Warner is, “really giving some thought� to retiring.

I really hope Warner comes back and plays, but based on what I’ve heard, he is really going to give retirement some thought. This is not a negotiation ploy, this is Warner being very serious about his life.

The thought of Warner retiring might come as a surprise to some considering he’s coming off one of his best seasons as a pro and just led the Cardinals to the Super Bowl. But he is 37 years old, is a major contributor off the field to various charitable groups and he already thought about retiring once this season when teammate Anquan Boldin was seriously hurt against the Jets in Week 4.

But it’s doubtful he walks away now. He’s a free agent and there’s no doubt the Cardinals will make a push to retain him in order to make another Super Bowl run. He might consider retiring or leaving Arizona if the team makes major changes this offseason, but that’s doubtful considering they’re coming off a Super Bowl appearance. If I were to make a guess at what happens with Warner, I would say he re-signs with the Cards for one-year and makes it his last.

Click here for six observations on Super Bowl XLIII.

Lucifer himself might as well have created the Monday after Super Bowl Sunday.

Is that extreme? No.

The Monday after the Super Bowl signals the end of another NFL season and that means there is no football on the horizon unless you’re one of the 10 people that watches the Pro Bowl. There are seven months between now and the start of preseason games, which makes me sick to think about. If I could freeze myself for the next seven months and thaw just in time for the 2009 season, I would.

Is that extreme? No.

But fear not my football friends because even though there isn’t any football this Sunday, it doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty to get excited about while looking ahead. Below are 10 things to look forward to now that the Super Bowl is over. (And so that you don’t have to freeze yourself for the next seven months.)

Before you read on, realize that I’m not going to copout and write about how free agency and the draft are things to look forward to. Of course they are, but let’s get more specific here, people.