Trading Patrick Peterson ‘out of the question’ for Cardinals, Wilks says

TEMPE, Ariz. — Cardinals coach Steve Wilks hadn’t heard that cornerback Patrick Peterson was unhappy and seeking a trade from Arizona.

But minutes before Wilks spoke with the media Monday at Cardinals headquarters, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Peterson was “desperate” for a trade before the Oct. 30 trade deadline and that the team had so far refused to consider such a move.

Wilks seemed to reaffirm the latter when asked if, regardless of how Peterson feels, the franchise would consider dealing one of the NFL’s top shutdown cornerbacks.

“Oh, no,” Wilks said. “We’re not trading Patrick. That’s out of the question.”

Patrick Peterson will not be traded

— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) October 22, 2018

Peterson and his head coach, a defensive backs coach by trade, will sit down to discuss the reported feelings of discontentment, Wilks said.

So as of Monday afternoon, Wilks would move forward with a status quo.

That said, the status quo is that Arizona is 1-6, having fired its offensive coordinator Mike McCoy three days prior. The defense ranks 11th in the NFL having allowed 233.9 total yards per game and 23rd by allowing 26.3 points per game.

The Cardinals are coming off their worst loss of the year, a 45-10 defeat against the Denver Broncos that saw turnovers on offense and broken plays on defense turn into a first-half rout.

Now, with the San Francisco 49ers on deck Sunday, Arizona must deal with another distraction as one of its stars has reportedly asked out as the team rebuffs any such trade talk.

“Patrick was here today — he hasn’t spoken to me about it at all. Had a pretty good practice. No concerns whatsoever,” Wilks said. “I don’t know whether or not he’s really requested that. He hasn’t expressed that to me but we will talk at some point in time.”

Asked how he would go about managing unhappy players, Wilks said he wouldn’t indulge in any speculation.

“I’m going to sit down and talk to Patrick,” he added. “Patrick is a captain. He’s well-respected around here, he’s well-respected throughout the league. Are we in a difficult situation? Yes, we are.

“It’s about trying to turn the corner and make things happen so we can make sure we get this thing on track.”

Two weeks earlier, Peterson echoed that sentiment.

“We have to continue trusting in the process, continue trusting in one another. It will eventually turn for us,” Peterson said.

“It’s been extremely tough. Obviously you want to win. I don’t care how you cut it — there’s nothing like winning. Especially when you have a new head coach, have so much going against you, you already have the outside world counting you out. It’s a rebuilding stage. But at the end of the day, we’re professionals. We want to go out there and prepare to win each and every Sunday. And we have been doing that. Just the ball hasn’t been falling our way. I believe, truly, we should at the worst, be 2-and-2.”

INJURY UPDATES

— Quarterback Josh Rosen didn’t practice Monday but will ditch a practice boot. He is expected to be able to participate in some capacity on Wednesday after spraining his toe last Thursday in the loss to Denver.

— Guard Mike Iupati (back) and safety Treu Boston (ribs) sat out of practice.

— Right guard Justin Pugh (hand) was limited.

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