The Arizona Cardinals may look at a Larry Fitzgerald trade this season and teams like the Oakland Raiders, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots all could be potential options for the team if they deal the WR, as he is set to make a ton of money over the rest of his contract and the Cards may look to part ways, as they have a number of players nearing free agency next offseason that they need to pay.
The Cardinals are not actively shopping Fitzgerald, but according to ESPN.com reporter John Weinfuss, the team may look at moving Fitzgerald at some point over the next year. Fitzgerald has multiple years left on his contract extension and it pays him a ton of money has large cap hits over the next few seasons and with at least 10 players hitting free agency this offseason, the Cardinals may have to clear some space. The emergence of Michael Floyd and the drafting of John Brown may also help the team if they opt to move Fitzgerald.
Fitzgerald has a massive contract and with 11 expiring deals coming for the Cardinals this offseason, it could be high time for a trade. The team loves Fitzgerald and he has been the franchise player for years, but he is about to get very expensive and his cap hits will only get bigger as each season goes on. Fitz is in on a seven year contract extension that started in 2011 and after making a base of $8 million this season, his cap hit will go to $23 million on his $15 million base salary.
The money drops back to around $17 million after next season, but with that huge number the Cardinals may have to sacrifice depth if they want to keep him. The emergence of Andre Ellington and the other wide receivers could make Fitzgerald expendable and he also could work out a new deal with the team to help avoid getting moved. Fitzgerald has Carson Palmer now, but the past few years have not been kind QB wise and a move to a team with a better quarterback could be good for both sides.
The Patriots don't appear to be willing to make such a big move and they have looked better since their terrible game against the Chiefs a few weeks ago. Miami has the money to make a move, but they already have Mike Wallace, while the Jets were an option, but now have Percy Harvin. That deal would have made sense, as the Jets have a ton of cap space, but they opted to go after Harvin instead.
The Browns also could be a wild card option for Fitzgerald even with Josh Gordon on his way back, as they are in need of some WR help for Brian Hoyer and Johnny Manziel. According to NFL.com, the Seahawks offered the Browns Percy Harvin in a trade before they dealt him to the Jets, but Seattle was asking for a lot with Jordan Cameron and the Browns declined the deal. The Seahawks also reportedly asked the Broncos for Julius Thomas, but they also declined the deal. The Browns love Cameron and while he is heading towards free agency, he still could end up signing a contract extension.
