Former Cardinals defender reportedly attempting an NFL comeback

After he was placed on the reserve/retired list by the Arizona Cardinals last season, cornerback Malcolm Butler is reportedly looking to return to the NFL in 2022.

Last March, the Arizona Cardinals said goodbye to longtime cornerback Patrick Peterson, and in his place, the team signed free-agent corner Malcolm Butler.

Butler was a seven-year NFL veteran who the Cardinals believed could help make up for the experience the team’s secondary lost by letting Peterson walk out the door.

It seemed like Butler was going to play an important role for Arizona’s defense during the 2021 season, but then he made a shocking decision to retire right before the team’s Week 1 matchup against the Tennessee Titans.

Former Arizona Cardinals cornerback Malcolm Butler reportedly attempting to return to NFL in 2022

Butler reportedly stepped away from the game before the start of last season due to a “personal issue” that he was dealing with according to NFL Media’s Mike Garafolo.

Recently, the Cardinals released the veteran cornerback from their reserve/retired list, meaning he is now free to sign with any team in the league if he decides he ever wants to play again.

From the sounds of it, returning to the NFL for next season seems like something Butler will be at least attempting to do.

According to The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin, Butler will “definitely” be attempting a make a comeback to the league for the 2022 campaign. At 32-years-old, it will be interesting to see if any teams take a chance on the veteran corner during the next few months.

After seeing this news, some Arizona fans might be wondering if Butler retired because he just didn’t want to suit up for the Cardinals last season. That’s possible, but it’s also possible that he truly was dealing with a personal issue that required him to step away from the sport for a significant amount of time.

Perhaps Butler will reveal the details behind his sudden retirement one day. But if he doesn’t, then that’s okay too since he has no obligation to share anything about his personal life to the public if he doesn’t want to.