The Arizona Cardinals have given their fan base plenty of reasons to be cynical over the past decade, so it was no surprise when eyebrows went up over the decision to meet Jacoby Brissett’s contract demands. But there is a difference between questioning a franchise move and disrespecting a player, and far too many people crossed that line after Brissett secured a well-deserved raise. The ridicule says more about those dishing it out than it does about a quarterback who stood tall behind one of the worst offensive lines in football, absorbing 43 sacks and over 100 hits without ever flinching, losing his nerve, or moping on the sideline like some kind of disgruntled house cat.
Anyone who actually watched this team last season knows the story. Brissett turned Michael Wilson from an afterthought into a legitimate weapon after Kyler Murray went down. He operated behind a porous line with no running game to speak of, all while a defense that surrendered an average of 35 points per game over the final nine weeks hung him out to dry week after week. And yet somehow the quarterback became the scapegoat for a one-win season. Yes, he struggled in late-game situations, but so did the coaching staff, which routinely turtled whenever the outcome hung in the balance.
What separates Brissett from his predecessor is toughness, plain and simple. By the time Murray bounced a snap off his helmet cage against the Titans and refused to dive for the loose ball, long after he had already stopped running by design, it was clear his reservoir of courage had run dry. Brissett brought something entirely different, and his teammates noticed. Marvin Harrison Jr., Trey McBride, and others made the trip to South Florida to train with their quarterback this offseason. Budda Baker personally pushed ownership to get the deal done. That kind of locker room backing does not happen by accident.
The financials only make the criticism look sillier. Brissett negotiated his own deal without an agent, landing just over $15 million guaranteed with incentives that could push the total to $21 million if he plays well enough to become irreplaceable. That is spare change for a starting quarterback in today’s market, especially compared to the $230.5 million albatross Murray squeezed out of the organization with $160 million guaranteed while acting like a bystander in the whole affair. If anything, Bidwill deserves grief not for paying Brissett but for dragging negotiations out long enough to waste valuable reps and preparation time. Whether that delay stems from lingering hope that Carson Beck can eventually take the reins remains to be seen, though early rumblings suggest the rookie has yet to wow the staff. Fans will start getting answers when preseason play opens August 6th inside what figures to be a brutal NFC West gauntlet.