New Broncos OT Jared Veldheer thanks Cardinals fans
Mar 28, 2018, 10:13 AM | Updated: 8:56 pm
Departed Cardinals tackle Jared Veldheer thanked the state of Arizona, the NFL franchise and its fans on Wednesday, five days after being traded to the Denver Broncos.
— Jared Veldheer (@Veldheer68) March 28, 2018
The Cardinals signed Veldheer to a five-year, $35 million deal in 2014 in order to protect the blindside for quarterback Carson Palmer. Veldheer held that position before a right triceps injury put him on injured reserve midway through the 2016 season.
Coming off the injury and after briefly contemplating retirement last offseason, Veldheer returned in 2017 as Arizona’s starting right tackle, sliding over as the Cardinals’ 2015 first-round pick, D.J. Humphries, moved to left tackle.
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Veldheer played 13 games last season before an ankle injury put him on injured reserve in mid-December.
Off the field, Veldheer was active in the community. A homebrewer, he collaborated with local breweries and tied some of those beer-making experiences to charitable causes, raising money to support recovery efforts for the Sonoma wildfires and, more recently, the Pat Tillman Foundation.
Arizona’s trade of Veldheer for a 2018 sixth-round pick came after the team signed free agent tackle Andre Smith to a two-year, $8 million deal that could approach $10.2 million with bonuses.
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