Arizona Cardinals agree to contract with CB Antonio Cromartie
Mar 20, 2014, 4:50 PM | Updated: 11:04 pm
The Arizona Cardinals have their cornerback.
ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter was the first to report the team had come to an agreement on a one-year deal with New York Jet Antonio Cromartie, and the team has since confirmed the news.
Financial terms of the deal are not yet known.
Cromartie, 29, started all 16 games for the Jets last season, collecting 38 combined tackles along with three interceptions. He also made his third career Pro Bowl but was released on March 9.
The former first-round pick of the San Diego Chargers in 2006 has 28 career interceptions. He has good speed and at 6-foot-2 and 210-pounds has excellent size for the position, but has been a bit inconsistent throughout the course of his career and by some metrics struggled in 2013.
However, as ProFootballFocus.com noted, Cromartie’s issues last season could have been due to injury.
How much of 2013 was down to an injured hip that he tried to play through? Otherwise the dropoff in Cromartie was steep as he was arguably one of the top three cornerbacks in the league based on his 2012 tape. Get back to that form and he’s as talented as it gets at the spot.
The Cardinals are banking on a healthy and motivated Cromartie fitting in well opposite Pro Bowler Patrick Peterson in a talented defensive backfield.
It's about to be trouble, trouble, trouble. Dollar Bill voice
— Patrick Peterson (@RealPeterson21) March 20, 2014
NO FLY ZONE
— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) March 20, 2014
This type of contract is not new for the Cardinals since Steve Keim took over as GM and Bruce Arians as coach. Just last season the team added veterans Karlos Dansby, Eric Winston and Antoine Cason, among others, to similar deals.
