CBA quirk not helping Cardinals extend Patrick Peterson's deal
GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Arizona Cardinals are committed to re-signing all-pro cornerback Patrick Peterson for the long haul and want to finalize a contract extension that pays him like one of the NFL's best sooner rather than later, general manager Steve Keim said Monday.
But the fantastic group of first-round picks from the 2011 draft class remain guinea pigs under the rules of the collective bargaining agreement, which has stalled negotiations elsewhere (if they've even started) involving teams that picked up fifth-year options on the rookie contracts for those Round 1 selections.
"He is certainly one of the top two or three corners in the league," Keim told USA TODAY Sports of Peterson as players warmed up for their first padded practice of training camp inside University of Phoenix Stadium.
"The thing about Patrick is he's not just a good player. He's a great human being. But the biggest obstacle with doing that deal probably is nobody in the 2011 first round has signed an extension yet."
The current CBA was finalized in August 2011, a few months after Peterson, Cam Newton, Von Miller, A.J. Green, Julio Jones, Aldon Smith, J.J. Watt, Robert Quinn and 24 others were drafted in the first round of a draft that could go down as one of the best ever.
Under the previous CBA, first-round picks received five- or six-year deals. Under the current agreement — in which players and owners both backed a system that cut into massive guarantees on rookie deals — each first-round pick gets a slotted four-year contract with a fifth-year option.
Though the window to sign those 2011 first-round picks to extensions opened at the end of the 2013 regular season, none have yet been signed beyond 2015. Twenty-two of 32 teams exercised the option, which for a top-10 pick is worth the average of the 10 highest salaries at his position the previous year. In the case of Peterson, the fifth overall pick in 2011, that's $10.081 million for the 2015 season.
"Obviously, I do want to stay here for a while," Peterson told USA TODAY Sports. "I know (Keim) and my agent (Joel Segal) are definitely working very hard trying to get something done. But right now, it's between those two, and me as well. They're in some pretty heated conversations."
Peterson's next deal figures to be on par with the bar-setting extensions signed in May by Seattle's Richard Sherman (four years, $56 million) and Cleveland's Joe Haden (five years, $67.5 million). Darrelle Revis has signed multi-year deals nominally averaging $16 million per year each of the past two offseasons, though he's unlikely to collect the $20 million the New England Patriots would currently have to pay him in 2015.
But Peterson has two years left on his deal instead one like Sherman and Haden, and that changes the math, the leverage and potentially the market value if he waits to sign until after the season.
There is no template for how to account for that extra year and the big salary that comes with it, since this is the first draft class to reach its fourth season under the current CBA. And many teams appear to be in no rush since they have control of the player for two more years anyway.
"We've made a concerted effort," Keim said. "We've been in negotiations. We've had some great talks with Joel Segal. We're going to stay aggressive.
"I don't know how many of those guys are even negotiating contracts with other teams. But I think it would be great to be one of the first teams to sign one of those '11 picks and get Patrick back under contract for several more years."
As usual, Peterson was the last player off the field signing autographs following Monday's practice. He's one of the faces of the franchise as well as a key piece to one of the NFL's best defenses. And he's still only 24 years old.
So, it's easy to believe Peterson when he says he isn't sweating a contract at this stage. He expressed optimism a deal could get done before the regular season begins Sept. 8 on Monday Night Football against the San Diego Chargers. If not, Peterson said, he'll want to table discussions until after the season.
"You play the game to set your family up for the long haul after football, because it's so physical. And you want to win championships," Peterson said. "But at the end of the day, I want a raise, you know? If anybody's on the same job, getting the same job but they're doing great, they're going to want a raise at some point in time.
"Time will tell. I'm not in a rush. It happens when it happens."
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Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter @TomPelissero
