GLENDALE, AZ – DECEMBER 24: Cornerback Patrick Peterson #21 of the Arizona Cardinals walks off the field following the NFL game against the New York Giants at the University of Phoenix Stadium on December 24, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. The Arizona Cardinals won 23-0. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The 1-6 Cardinals aren’t going anywhere any time soon, and Patrick Peterson wants to escape Arizona as soon as possible.
The Arizona Cardinals are a miserable 1-6 right now, and cornerback Patrick Peterson is ready to get out of this situation in which he’s spent his entire career thus far.
The NFL trade deadline is coming up at the end of the month, and according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Peterson would like the Cardinals to trade him before then. Schefter reported that Peterson feels like the situation in Arizona is “deteriorating” and that he has been consistently letting others know that he “desperately” wants to get out.
Should the Cardinals end up granting Peterson’s wish and dealing him out of the desert, it will essentially be the end of an era for this Arizona defense. The 28-year-old Peterson is currently in his eighth year with the Cardinals, who drafted him fifth overall in the 2011 NFL Draft. He’s been a staple on this unit, having been selected to seven Pro Bowls and being named a First Team All-Pro three times.
Though Peterson has been a part of some pretty good Cardinals teams, even making a couple of trips to the playoffs, Arizona has never really been a true Super Bowl contender during Peterson’s tenure to this point. Though Cardinals management prefers to think of this time as a transitional period and not a rebuild, they are pretty much rebuilding right now, and their 1-6 record shows it. They have a rookie quarterback in Josh Rosen who is hardly ready for his role right now, and it’s going to be another year or two before the Cardinals are back on the map.
It makes sense why Peterson doesn’t want to spend the last few years of his prime on a rebuilding team. The time is now for him to play for a Super Bowl contender, and that’s only going to happen if he can get out of Arizona.
Trading Peterson would benefit the Cardinals as well, as they could garner a nice return for him, including some future draft picks that could greatly speed up their rebuilding process.