After a brief stint with the Arizona Cardinals last year, veteran cornerback Malcolm Butler has signed a deal to play for the New England Patriots.
Prior to signing with the Arizona Cardinals last year, cornerback Malcolm Butler had made a name for himself in the NFL as a member of both the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans.
Butler is, of course, the guy who snagged the game-sealing interception for the Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX against the Seattle Seahawks.
So when the Cardinals signed him during the 2021 offseason, the hope was that he could continue to make life miserable for the Seahawks in addition to the other members of the NFC West. But that hope never got the chance to turn into a reality for Butler and Arizona.
Former Arizona Cardinals CB Malcolm Butler signs with the New England Patriots
Right before the start of the 2021 regular season, Butler landed on the Cardinals’ reserve/retired list due to a personal matter. It was a shock to many Arizona fans who were excited to see the veteran corner make plays in their favorite team’s uniform.
In February, it was reported that Butler was attempting to make an NFL comeback after sitting out the entire 2021 season. On Thursday, his comeback attempt became a whole lot more real when he signed a contract to rejoin New England’s roster.
Even though he didn’t play at all last year, Butler still managed to land a two-year deal from the Patriots worth $9 million. New England clearly thinks the 32-year-old corner has plenty left in the tank to help out their secondary.
With Butler’s return, some Cardinals fans might feel irritated that it looks like he basically decided he just didn’t want to play for Arizona in 2021. However, there have been no details revealed about the actual reason why he retired last year other than it was due to a personal matter, so it would be foolish to assume that he intentionally sat out all of last season to avoid suiting up for the Cardinals.
It was just something that didn’t end up working out for Arizona, and sometimes, that’s how things go.