Boldin
GLENDALE – Anquan Boldin’s agent has made a contract proposal to the Cardinals, but it’s questionable how interested the team is in entering negotiations.
Agent Drew Rosenhaus broke the news of the offer on his Twitter account Thursday and confirmed it to The Republic later in the day.
Rosenhaus said contrary to speculation, Boldin is not seeking a deal worth $10 million a year, which is what teammate Larry Fitzgerald is receiving. The recent offer is for less, according to Rosenhaus.
“It’s inaccurate and I just wanted to clear the record,” Rosenhaus said of the $10 million figure. Rosenhaus declined to discuss his proposal, saying, “I’m not going to negotiate Anquan’s contract through the media.”
Cardinals general manager Rod Graves was not available for comment.
An NFL source familiar with the proposal said the deal averaged just under $10 million per season.
Rosenhaus declined to say when he made the proposal to the Cardinals. He has discussed the proposal with Graves, he said, but the Cardinals have not responded with a counteroffer.
“I think we can be reasonable as long as Anquan is among the top-paid receivers,” Rosenhaus said. “We just want a contract commensurate with his performance. You find me another guy with three Pro Bowls, the same number of yards, receptions, touchdowns and toughness.”
Rosenhaus acknowledged that circumstances dictate that Boldin will make less than Fitzgerald.
The Cardinals were forced to renegotiate Fitzgerald’s contract a year ago because incentive clauses would have pushed his salaries to $14.6 million in 2009 and more than $17 million in 2009.
With two years remaining on his contract, Boldin doesn’t have that kind of leverage.
“We do have years left on our contract,” Rosenhaus said. “We’re not facing the same set of circumstances as the guy who is looking at free agency.”
But Rosenhaus said he and Boldin are not “just going to sit pat and look forward to another uncomfortable year like last year. We’re going to continue to talk to the team about a new deal and continue to hope the team will be flexible for a trade.”
Boldin believes the team has reneged on a promise to address his contract situation and would prefer to be traded.
Last week, Rosenhaus wrote on Twitter that he thought Boldin would be traded before training camp. Rosenhaus can’t negotiate a contract with other clubs unless given permission, but going public with the recent proposal to the Cardinals lets other teams know Boldin’s asking price is less than $10 million a year.
It could be the range of $8 million to $9 million a year on average. T.J. Houshmandzadeh signed a five-year, $40 million deal with Seattle this spring, with $15 million guaranteed.
Dallas traded for Roy Williams last year then signed him to a five-year, $45 million deal with $20 million guaranteed.
Boldin re-signed with the team in 2005, two years into his rookie contract, and received $10 million in bonuses. He is due to make $2.75 million this year and $3 million in 2010.