Why Boldin Needs To Be In Arizona

Lost in all the talk about Anquan Boldin, Drew Rosenhaus and trade destinations is the fact the Arizona Cardinals are going to come out of this whole ordeal smiling — because they’ll still have the best wide receiver combo in the NFL if they can get this taken care of quickly.

Welcome Back?

There is still an outside possibility that Boldin could find his way into a different uniform by September, but let’s be honest here — he probably isn’t going anywhere except back to training camp with the Cardinals.

And I’m starting to wonder why no one is considering this a good thing?

Yes, I can agree that the story got old — very old — after the draft when no one could entice the Cards to give up Boldin. And I can also agree that Boldin took one on the chin from the media when rumors came out that he wanted a salary that would pay him over $9 million a year — myself included.

But with all these trade demands and headlines playing out like a reality show in front of our eyes, what’s wrong with Boldin going back to Arizona and teaming up with Larry Fitzgerald and Kurt Warner again?

I agree that in sports we often tend to forget about the previous season before it’s even over, but this team is still loaded on offense and is still a contender with Boldin in a red jersey. And let’s not kid ourselves by saying the Cards don’t need him to win, or that Warner and Fitzgerald can do it on their own — because we know it’s just not true.

Boldin caught 89 passes for 1,038 yards and 11 TDs — in 12 regular-season games. No one, including the up-and-coming Steve Breaston, can replace those numbers. Plus, we’ll also see some different game plans against the Cardinals by opposing defenses if Boldin is not in town.

Trust me, it’s a lot easier to play Cover 2 to one side of the field over the top of Fitzgerald and take your chances with the rest of the roster.

Boldin prevents that. But he still has to agree to play ball in Arizona.

The Immediate Future

I expect this off-the-field game between Boldin and Cardinals management to be played out for some time.

He isn’t participating in offseason workouts and will avoid OTAs at any cost, but I’m not worried about that. I’ve said before that the offseason is the beginning of the preparation for the season ahead, but teams are built in August — when you play football in pads.

This team won’t suffer now, but it will suffer if this continues into August, into training camp and into the preseason games.

But I really don’t see it going that far. Why? Because Boldin has officially started over by letting go of Rosenhaus as his representation, and the Cardinals didn’t make a move when they received offers and had a chance to move Boldin.

Plus, if you were the Cardinals, would you let Boldin walk? They don’t want to renegotiate a contract with him, but then, do they want to keep winning?

Successful teams in this league usually have small windows to win, and looking at this offense with Warner — an aging quarterback who’s had trouble staying healthy in the past — the last thing I would do is trade Boldin because they can still win now.

But this team has to work out something with him soon. No, I don’t agree that he’s worth the money he’s rumored to be asking for, but if the team feels like its window to win extends beyond the next couple of seasons, then give him a new deal — a respectable deal — or just let it be known that there are no further negotiations. Either way, get him into camp.

The Cardinals don’t need the distraction, and we don’t want to keep reading about it.

Like I said above, we tend to forget just how good this team was offensively in 2008, and the last thing the Cards want on their plate is a holdout when it counts. Get it done and move on.

Having Boldin back is a good thing — a great thing — for this franchise. It translates into wins, and this team has the ability to keep winning, especially in 2009.

I have officially joined the Twitter revolution. Follow me at MattBowen41.

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