Larry Fitzgerald Restructures Contract
6:40pm: Fitzgerald converted $11.75MM of his $12.75MM deal into a bonus, saving Arizona about $9.4MM against the salary cap, tweets Albert Breer of NFL Network.
5:40pm: Fitzgerald’s deal is a simple restructuring that converted part of his salary to a bonus, two NFL sources tell Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter). Somers figures that the move will give the Cards about $10MM in space.
4:04pm: Larry Fitzgerald said last week that he’d be open to the possibility of restructuring his contract, and it didn’t take him long to back up those comments. Fitzgerald sent out a tweet today announcing that his “first order of business” upon returning to Arizona after the Super Bowl was to sign a reworked deal to help improve the Cardinals’ flexibility for 2014. Though specific numbers aren’t yet known, Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com confirms that the star receiver has officially restructured his contract.
Fitzgerald, who was set to enter the fourth year of the eight-year extension he signed with the Cardinals back in 2011, had been slated to earn a base salary of $12.75MM this year, with bonuses bringing his total cap number to $18MM. Assuming the 30-year-old didn’t accept a pay cut, the simplest way for the Cardinals to create cap space for 2014 would involve converting most of his base salary to a bonus that can be spread across the remaining five years on the deal. Such an agreement would increase the amount of guaranteed money owed to Fitzgerald, and increase his cap number in the contract’s later years. We’ll have to wait for the actual figures to be reported, but by my calculations, Arizona could create up to about $9MM in 2014 cap room in the move.
Given how quickly the Cardinals and Fitzgerald reached an agreement, it seems as if the two sides are committed to continuing the relationship, which should quiet trade rumors for now. A recent report suggested that the Patriots contemplated the idea of pursuing Fitzgerald in a trade last offseason, but now that the Cards have reduced his cap number, Arizona is no longer under any immediate pressure to move him. Of course, by putting off their financial commitments to Fitzgerald, the Cardinals will eventually face a similar cap crunch, perhaps as soon as next season, when his cap number was already projected to be over $21MM.
For now though, with their newfound cap flexibility, the Cardinals can turn their attention to retaining some of their prospective free agents, which includes a list of 15 players headed for unrestricted free agency. The team also figures to discuss a long-term deal for Patrick Peterson, who is extension-eligible for the first time this offseason.
Fitzgerald Open To Restructuring Contract
3:44pm: Cardinals president Michael Bidwill confirmed to Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link) that the team has spoken to Fitzgerald’s agent and is “excited” about the possibility of working something out.
1:31pm: The Cardinals are expected to approach Larry Fitzgerald this offseason about the possibility of restructuring his contract, and the star receiver is open to the idea, he tells Fox Sports 910 in Arizona (Twitter link). According to Fitzgerald, he’ll “absolutely” be willing to restructure his deal if “that’s what needs to be done.”
Fitzgerald, 30, signed an eight-year, $120MM extension with the Cardinals in 2011, keeping him under contract through the 2018 season. According to an Arizona Republic report earlier in the month, Fitzgerald isn’t interested in accepting a pay cut, so reworking his deal would likely just involve converting a portion of his base salary into a bonus that could be prorated over the course of the contract. While that would reduce Fitzgerald’s massive $18MM cap number for 2014, the Cardinals would increase the cap hits down the road in that scenario, so we’ll have to see if the two sides can reach a compromise.
On Tuesday, word broke that the Patriots mulled the idea of acquiring Fitzgerald last offseason. Like the Cards, the Pats don’t have a ton of cap flexibility, but it’s still possible that they could consider pursuing him again, especially if he’s willing to reduce his 2014 cap number.
Fitzgerald appeared in all 16 games for a sixth straight season in 2013, racking up 82 catches, 954 yards, and 10 touchdowns with Carson Palmer throwing him the ball.
AFC East Rumors: Pats, Fitzgerald, Dolphins
While Larry Fitzgerald has long been considered a logical trade target for the Patriots, there haven’t been many substantial reports over the years linking the Pats to the Cardinals receiver. However, Tom E. Curran of CSNNE.com hears from a “very well-placed” source that New England had legitimate interest in acquiring Fitzgerald last offseason, sending out feelers to gauge the feasibility of such a move. As Curran writes, things likely didn’t progress too far, and it’s not clear if the Pats would still have interest in Fitzgerald, who is due a significant pay bump for 2014.
Here’s more from out of the AFC East:
- In his latest mailbag at ESPNBoston.com, Mike Reiss predicts that free agent receiver Julian Edelman will draw offers in the neighborhood of the deal Danny Amendola signed last year (five years, $28.5MM), with the Texans and Browns among the teams that could make it hard for the Patriots to re-sign Edelman.
- The Dolphins introduced new general manager Dennis Hickey at a press conference this afternoon, with Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel and Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald among the reporters passing along highlights. Some notable items from the presser: Owner Stephen Ross stressed that Hickey will have full control of the 53-man roster and that Hickey doesn’t “have to listen” if Ross tells him to draft, pursue, or play a specific player. Hickey added that the structure of the front office is “completely clear” to him and that he’s already spoken to the team’s medical and personnel staff about the team’s free agents (all four Twitter links).
- The Bills announced today that they’ve granted the Browns permission to interview defensive line coach Anthony Weaver. If Weaver is eventually hired by the Browns, he’d be the latest in an increasingly lengthy line of Bills coaches following Mike Pettine to Cleveland.