Tag: Arizona Cardinals (Page 34 of 51)

      Fitzgerald contract story overblown?

      January 28, 2009 /

      On Tuesday, a report surfaced that Cardinals’ wideout Larry Fitzgerald was willing to restructure his contract in efforts to keep teammate Anquan Boldin in Arizona. But apparently that story was a bit overblown.

      From Rotoworld      :

      Larry FitzgeraldAsked about possibly restructuring his contract Wednesday, Larry Fitzgerald said, “I don’t know where that came from.”

      Fitzgerald spoke to Rotoworld’s Gregg Rosenthal among a media throng Wednesday morning and seemed perplexed by the story, but didn’t exactly shoot it down. “Someone asked me if I’d be willing to do something to help the team and I said absolutely. … This is an amazing feeling and I’ll do anything I have to do to get back to this point.” It sounds like Fitzgerald is open to the possibility, but he was just answering a question vaguely. Ultimately, his agent will have the biggest say in the matter and probably hopes Fitz will decline to discuss the matter more publicly.

      Okay, so apparently some overzealous reporter ran with a story that didn’t exist. It was a nice idea and maybe it’ll still happen, but for now the Boldin-contract situation is still as much of a mess as it was in preseason.

      According to ESPN.com, Cardinals’ GM Rod Graves says he plans to meet with Boldin after the season in attempts to resolve the issue. But money talks in the end and if the team doesn’t pony up, this situation won’t be resolved any time soon.

      NFL, Super Bowl

      Larry Fitzgerald willing to restructure to keep Anquan Boldin?

      January 27, 2009 /

      According to NFL Network’s Adam Schefter, Larry Fitzgerald might be willing to restructure his deal in order for the Cardinals to keep wideout Anquan Boldin this offseason.

      Larry FitzgeraldQuestions surround Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin and his future in Arizona. But one of the keys to it could turn out to be Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald.

      Just as Fitzgerald accepted a four-year, $40 million deal from Arizona last year when he could have made considerably more on the open market so he could leave the Cardinals cap space, Fitzgerald would like to help the Cardinals again.

      Fitzgerald is willing to restructure his contract so that the Cardinals can redo Boldin’s and keep him in Arizona long-term. Boldin wants his deal redone and said during the season that he never would re-sign with Arizona again, but many around the league believe that as long as the Cardinals make a sufficient offer, then Boldin will agree to stay.

      Plus, it will be especially hard to turn down when Fitzgerald is willing to make the selfless offer that he is to make it possible for Boldin to stay. The two compose the game’s top receiving duo and their salaries also could be tied to one another.

      Everyone has seen that Fitzgerald is one of the games top players this post-season. Now they’re about to see how selfless he can be this off-season.

      If this is true, what a selfless act by Fitzgerald. He knows what it took for the Cards to reach the Super Bowl and he understands that with Boldin on the other side, his production rises. Some wideouts only care about numbers, but Fitz just proved that he cares about winning above all else.

      He’s certainly an easy athlete to root for.

      NFL, Super Bowl

      Warner to test free agent market according to agent

      January 27, 2009 /

      Cardinals’ quarterback Kurt Warner is getting ready to face the Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII this week, but by next week he could be shopping himself around to other teams.

      Kurt WarnerFollowing Sunday’s Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Warner becomes a free agent.

      Meanwhile, here in Chicago, Mark Bartelstein is hatching an all-inclusive plan that would give other teams a chance to make an offer to his client.

      “The Bears obviously have to figure out which direction they want to go with the quarterback thing,” Bartelstein said. “It has, obviously, been a point of contention for quite a while. We have to wait and see what they decide they want to do.”

      The Cardinals will have to decide whether they want to commit to Warner while young first-round pick Matt Leinart sits in the wings.

      “Look, Kurt has had a great time (with Arizona). He loves the coaching staff and the guys on the team. He has built great connections with his teammates. So certainly I think he would love to get something done,” Bartelstein said.

      “My view with players is always that once you get to free agency, you have earned the right to find out about yourself. You would be silly not to have an open mind.”

      With the way he played this season, Warner does deserve the right to test the free agent market. And considering Arizona still has Leinart in its back pocket, Warner might get offered more money elsewhere because the Cardinals do have another quarterback on the roster with (albeit limited) starting experience.

      But Warner has had a multitude of success in two places: St. Louis and Arizona. And in both situations, he played indoors and in a passing offense. Not that he couldn’t succeed elsewhere (like Chicago), but maybe the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t. In other words, I think Kurt’s place is back with Arizona if the Cardinals make him a reasonable offer. (Regardless of what happens in the Super Bowl.) Arizona just seems like a good fit for Warner.

      NFL

      Does Kurt Warner get enough respect?

      January 23, 2009 /

      John Lavallo of Takeoutmag.com writes that Cardinals’ veteran signal caller Kurt Warner gets no respect and delves into the discussion of whether or not he’s Hall of Fame-worthy (which many media members as Lavallo points out, do not believe so).

      Kurt Warner“Not a singular player in his era”.This is laughable. Let’s assume Warner’s “era” is the late 90’s and early 00’s (that’s sort of an era, I guess). In that time, what did our man do? Threw for nearly 14,000 yards (and another 15,000 yards since), completed nearly 70% of his passes, lead his team to three 500+ point seasons, made 4 Pro-Bowls, won 2 MVP’s, lead his team to 2 Super Bowls, won a championship, along with throwing 400+ yards and collecting an MVP trophy for Super Bowl XXXIV. Warner had the best 3-year stretch of any QB in NFL history. And since 1999 is smack dab in his era, let’s take specific notice of that year. Warner had the best single season of any QB in NFL history, not only because of eye-popping stats (41 TD’s, 4,300+ yards) but also because, unlike Dan Marino in 1984 and Tom Brady in 2007 (both of whom had technically superior seasons, stat-wise), Warner actually ended up winning his last game. In fact, he is only NFL quarterback to throw 40 touchdowns and win a Super Bowl in the same season. Remarkable stats AND a Super Bowl ring? Show me one other QB in one other year, or ANY era, that had a better season than Kurt Warner in 1999. I defy you. And I think Kurt’s era has a part 2 called the ‘late 00’s’, in which he has been the best QB in the NFL over the past 2 seasons (project out his stats from 2007, in which he only started 10 games yet threw for nearly 3,000 yards and add that to a 4,500+ yard 2008 season. Oh, and he led his team to the Super Bowl.

      Lavallo touched on all of the arguments against Warner being a Hall of Famer, so make sure to check out the entire article.

      I’ll chime in on this debate the same way I do all Hall of Fame discussions for active players: let’s wait until Warner’s done playing before we say whether he’s worthy of HOF consideration or not. That might be a cop-out, but he may win three more Super Bowls by the time his career is over with and then there wouldn’t much of a discussion, would there?

      Either way, Warner is going to be a special case because he came back into the NFL with the Rams in ’99, set the league on fire and then damn near fell off the map. Now he’s back setting the league on fire and that’s why you have so many detractors and supporters. Yeah, he’s numbers are outstanding in the years he played well, but injuries made him look like Ryan Leaf for all the years in between. So again, let’s see how his career finishes out when we have the full picture.

      NFL, Super Bowl

      Five ’08 NFL playoff teams with issues heading into ’09

      January 22, 2009 /

      Vinnie Iyer of SportingNews.com did an interesting piece on five NFL playoff teams who have big issues heading into the 2009 season.

      Ray Lewis1) Baltimore Ravens. Joe Flacco has had a great start to his career, but to take the next step as a quarterback, he probably could use a young receiver with No. 1 potential. The more pressing issues, however, are with Baltimore’s backbone, its defense. First, it’ll be a challenge to find a coordinator and play-caller to match Rex Ryan, who left to become head coach of the New York Jets…

      2) Philadelphia Eagles. To some extent, the Donovan McNabb question was answered, at least for the ’09 season. His support system may be different, however. Aging offensive tackles Tra Thomas and Jon Runyan will be free agents. Top guard Shawn Andrews will need to come back from back surgery, and also may need to move outside. Backup running back Correll Buckhalter also wants to explore options out of Philadelphia. Defensively, stalwart safety Brian Dawkins could also walk…

      3) Carolina Panthers. Will Carolina need to address the quarterback position after Jake Delhomme’s six-turnover fiasco against Arizona in the divisional playoffs? It seems unfair to judge Delhomme on his first truly bad playoff game, when his play and leadership has been huge for the Panthers in the big picture. But still, with his age (34) and the fact he’s just one year removed from major elbow surgery, it might be time to draft a project passer to groom. In addition, Delhomme’s Pro Bowl left tackle, Jordan Gross, can become an unrestricted free agent….

      4) Indianapolis Colts. Tony Dungy and general manager Bill Polian were hoping for a smooth coaching transition with Jim Caldwell taking over, but it hasn’t been necessarily easy in the early going. Offensive coordinator Tom Moore, 70, and offensive line coach Howard Mudd, 66, nearly opted to follow Dungy into retirement. Defensive coordinator Ron Meeks flat-out resigned on Tuesday, and Caldwell fired special teams coach Russ Pernell. Caldwell isn’t a Dungy clone — there will be a different feel around the team….

      5) New York Giants. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo left to be head coach of the Rams, and there’s a chance offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride gets the same gig with the Raiders. The unit that Gilbride may leave behind has plenty of issues…

      Iyer goes into more detail on every team, so check out the entire piece.

      I agree on all of Iyer’s takes, although these problems are nothing new for any playoff team. Good teams have their coordinators stripped from them to become head coaches in other cities. Star players in contract years bolt for bigger paydays elsewhere, while other standouts get another year older or slower.

      All five of the above teams have the potential to face major change and that’s what makes them a risk not to make a repeat playoff appearance next year. The most interesting team is the Ravens because they have so many questions to answer about their defense, which has been their identity the past eight or nine years.

      NFL

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