Former Arizona Cardinal’s comments show lack of gratitude

A recent Instagram message from Tyrann Mathieu suggests that the defensive back holds a grudge against the Arizona Cardinals

Earlier this year, the Arizona Cardinals were faced with a tough dilemma. One of the club’s most popular players, Tyrann Mathieu, was due to count a ridiculous $14.1 million against the 2018 salary cap. After a restructuring of the deal was unsuccessful, the “Honey Badger” was released, ending his time with the Cardinals.

On his way out of town, Mathieu exhibited nothing but class. The defensive back thanked the entire Arizona organization for taking a chance on him back in 2013. The Cards’ selection of Mathieu in the third round of the draft afforded him an opportunity to play in the NFL.

Fans of Mathieu may recall that his becoming a professional was anything but a given. The college star was kicked off of the LSU football squad for violating their substance-abuse policy. The off-the-field behavior was egregious enough to cause Mathieu to tumble during the draft, but the Cardinals obviously weren’t scared off.

Now, five years later, Mathieu is no longer showing gratitude towards his former franchise. In a recent Instagram, the Houston Texans’ starting safety blasted Arizona. Bitter feelings have apparently surfaced for Mathieu, and he now feels that he was wronged by the club.

Mathieu, for lack of a better word, is acting like an ingrate. Cards’ general manager Steve Keim drafted the troubled player after everyone else in the league passed on him at least twice. If that wasn’t enough, the Cardinals were also generous enough to hand Mathieu a five-year, $62.5 million extension just months after he had suffered a second torn ACL.

It’s fair to say that Arizona management didn’t get a lot back from such a huge investment. Mathieu did make it to one Pro Bowl, following an outstanding performance in 2015. That one great campaign was accompanied by a load of mediocre play, production that certainly didn’t live up to the hefty contract that Mathieu received.

Mathieu’s assertion that he was treated unfairly by the Cards is completely off-base. It’s true that Keim asked had asked him to take a pay cut. However, Mathieu’s one-year agreement with Houston was reportedly for less money than the Cardinals had offered.

All of the class that Mathieu showed when exiting the desert has been washed away by his unfortunate comments. The 26-year old stated that he’d have no interest in returning to Arizona. That’s most likely fine and dandy with the Cards, who probably wouldn’t want Mathieu to come back anyway.