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Well that was fast.
A mere days after word broke that the New England Patriots had inquired about Larry Fitzgerald last season, the All-World receiver wasted absolutely no time in restructuring his contract in order to make it more cap-friendly for the Arizona Cardinals. Fitzgerald also took to Twitter almost immediately to express how happy he was to be with the team:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Back in AZ from <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23SB48&src=hash">#SB48</a> & the 1st order of business this AM was signing a restructured contract to help the <a href="https://twitter.com/AZCardinals">@AZCardinals</a> get better for 2014!</p>— Larry Fitzgerald (@LarryFitzgerald) <a href="https://twitter.com/LarryFitzgerald/statuses/430822732620521472">February 4, 2014</a></blockquote>
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While it certainly isn't surprising that Fitzgerald restructured his contract, as he has always been a team first guy and a player that nobody really thought Arizona would ever let go, it does put any rumors of Fitz to the Patriots to bed for good. At age 30, however long his extension is will likely be the last big contract he receives, and should he ever decide to play elsewhere, it will be in the twilight of his career when he isn't the caliber of player he is now.
Details of the contract are as of yet unknown, but likely includes a signing bonus that prorates his salary over the next few years. This move also means that to trade Fitzgerald in any capacity would mean Arizona is eating a significant amount of money and his signing bonus would count against the cap this year regardless of where he ends up. In other words: not happening.
So it was fun while it lasted. Nobody really expected Fitzgerald to play for New England, but it was always an enjoyable conversation to have every offseason. All I can hope for now is for the Cards to go out and get him a quarterback. Larry deserves it.