Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury and quarterback Kyler Murray are landing a veteran wide receiver who should add a different dynamic to their offensive attack. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Cardinals are working on a deal to sign former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green. CBS NFL Insider Jason La Canfora confirms that Green is headed to Arizona. Rapoport says that this deal has been in the works since Tuesday night, and that it will likely be a one-year deal worth around $8 million.
Green has made seven Pro Bowls in nine seasons played, and has been one of the best wide receivers in the NFL over the last decade. Unfortunately, his production has begun to slip as he has gotten older. Green is coming off of the worst season of his career, as he caught just 47 of 104 targets for 523 yards and two touchdowns in 16 games. That 45.2 percent catch rate was the worst mark he had recorded in his career by far, as was his five yards per target. Green is set to turn 33 in July, but this change of scenery could benefit him. DeAndre Hopkins helped Murray take his game to another level in 2020, and having veterans in Green and Larry Fitzgerald (if he decides to return) would make things easier for the offense as a whole.
Green was selected by the Bengals with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft out of Georgia. He started off his NFL career with five straight 1,000-yard seasons before missing six games in 2016, which ended his streak. Green got back to his ways by recording 1,078 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in 2017, but suffered a toe injury in 2018 that caused him to miss seven games. Green then missed the entire 2019 season due to an ankle injury. In 127 career games played, Green has caught 649 passes for 9,430 yards and 65 touchdowns. He is currently No. 56 on the all-time receiving yards list, and tied for 58th in all-time receiving touchdowns.
