The offseason has already been a productive one for the Cardinals as they have agreed on new contracts with wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, coach Bruce Arians and General Manager Steve Keim.
There was a press conference to formally announce the latter two deals on Tuesday and Keim wasted no time talking about one of the next items on the team’s to-do list. Keim said that the team hopes to come to a “happy agreement” with defensive lineman Darnell Dockett on a restructured contract that will lower his scheduled $9.8 million cap hit for the 2015 season.
Team president Michael Bidwill said that cap hit put him in the same boat as Fitzgerald, who also joined the team in 2014.
“We drafted him in the same class as Fitz; I’d love to have him retire as a Cardinal, I think that’s what he needs to do is stay in a Cardinal uniform and we’re looking forward to working with him to restructure his deal,” Bidwill said, via ArizonaSports.com. “It’ll free up some cap space so we can be out there, being aggressive and building a team and getting a ring on his finger.”
Dockett missed the 2014 season with a torn ACL, but had missed just two games in his first 10 years with the Cardinals. He’s been a starter for almost all of that time and should move back into a prominent role as long as he’s healthy and under contract for next season.
