Arizona Cardinals officially sign Gonzalez

The Arizona Cardinals had their kicker sign his qualifying offer on Thursday

Finally, some non-draft news to talk about pertaining to the Arizona Cardinals.  It was nothing Earth-shattering but they signed one of their own on Thursday.

Kicker Zane Gonzalez, who was fantastic in 2019, signed a one-year deal reportedly worth $3.25 million.  According to Arizona Sports it makes him the fifth-highest paid kicker in the NFL.

Gonzalez you remember, who came out of Arizona State, was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2017.  Many Cardinals fans wanted the Cardinals to go after him had he not been drafted.  Some even discussed the possibility of the Cardinals drafting him.

They got their wish to have him back in Arizona at the end of 2018 when then-kicker Phil Dawson got hurt just before retirement.  Gonzalez made an impression going 7-9 in field goal attempts, including two of them for over 50-yards and three total against the Seattle Seahawks in the season finale.

Last season Gonzalez did not disappoint.  He made 31-35 field goal attempts and went 34-35 in extra points.

The Cardinals were smart to keep Gonzalez in the fold.  He seemed to be given a bad rap in Cleveland after a rough start to the 2018 season.

Some of that could be attributed to expectations for the Browns going into the 2018 season.  Yes he struggled but now he is showing why is worth the money.

Gonzalez is accurate and has a strong leg.  He was 2-2 last season in field goals over 50 yards.  Coach Kliff Kingsbury rolled the dice at times instead of kicking longer field goals last year.

That didn’t have anything to do with the ability of Gonzalez but rather wanting to not settle for 3 points and try to get 7.  We’d be kidding ourselves though if we want to see a lot of field goals in 2020.

He will get his chances but let’s hope he doesn’t have to kick many.  We need touchdowns instead.