Cardinals bring Conner back, Kirk and Edmonds sign elsewhere

On Monday, the Arizona Cardinals re-signed running back James Conner and watched Christian Kirk and Chase Edmonds walk out the door to join other teams.

Monday marked the start of the NFL’s legal tampering period for 2022 and the Arizona Cardinals didn’t waste much time to make an impactful move as they were able to re-sign running back James Conner to a three-year extension.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Conner’s new deal is reportedly worth $21 million with a max value of $25.5 million. Schefter also revealed that $13.5 million of the running back’s new contract is fully guaranteed.

Conner bet on himself with a one-year deal in 2021, and after an impressive performance with Arizona last season, he was rewarded by the Cardinals on Monday.

Arizona Cardinals lose Christian Kirk and Chase Edmonds in free agency

Despite being able to re-sign Conner, Arizona also saw some notable names from their 2021 roster join other teams on Monday.

After spending his first four seasons in the NFL with the Cardinals, running back Chase Edmonds will reportedly sign a two-year contract with the Miami Dolphins worth $12.6 million. Arizona basically had to pick between Edmonds and Conner this offseason and they went with the latter.

A little later in the day, former Cardinals 2018 second-round draft pick Christian Kirk reportedly agreed to a four-year deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars worth $72 million according to multiple reports. Kirk’s contract with the Jaguars also has a max value of $84 million.

Arizona didn’t have a ton of money to spend this offseason, so it’s not too much of a surprise to see Edmonds and Kirk move on. One should expect the Cardinals to try and find replacements for both players during the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft.