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We’re downgrading Anquan Boldin from “miffed” to “angry”. He confirmed Tuesday that he’s asked for a trade, upset with his contract situation.
The Cardinals in the offseason gave Larry Fitzgerald a new contract worth $40 million over four years. But Boldin, who’s put up similar numbers, is stuck with three years left on a contract that averages $2.5 million annually.
Now, things have eroded to the point where Boldin wants out of town. He and the team are no longer even talking about a contract extension. It’s not really possible for Arizona to commit that kind of money to two wide receivers.
“At the beginning of camp, I hadn't asked for a trade," Boldin said. "As of recently, we did."
Boldin says he’s no longer even speaking with Ken Whisenhunt. The coach, Boldin said, interfered in contract talks. Instead, it’s kind of like Terrell Owens in his final year in Philadelphia, where he showed up at practice but declined to speak with offensive coordinator Brad Childress.
Whisenhunt says he doesn’t think his relationship with Boldin is damaged beyond repair.
"You guys have been at practice every day; we've been communicating," Whisenhunt said Tuesday. "At least, if communicating is talking, that's what we've been doing at practice. . . . I don't foresee anything changing, so if it does, that's certainly in his court."
Will the Cardinals trade Boldin? Unlikely. There doesn’t appear to be enough of a market for him. Philadelphia and Washington were shopping for a top level receiver in the offseason, but both of those teams drafted players at that position. Dallas might – might – be a possibility.
To read more on the Boldin situation, see Kent Somers’ article today in the Arizona Republic.
A team that should be taking notes: Detroit. The Lions also have two top receivers – Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson. And with what they have invested in Johnson, there’s no way they’ll be able to re-sign Williams when he becomes a free agent at the end of the year. Detroit, therefore, probably will wind up having to trade Williams. Most likely, that will be some kind of trade next spring. Far less likely (this is the NFL, where trades are rare), the Lions will move Williams before the October trade deadline.
—Ian Allan
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