For the second time in five months, the Cardinals are re-working the contract of edge rusher Devon Kennard. The team and player have agreed to a reconfigured deal, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
Kennard signed a three-year, $20M deal with his hometown Cardinals in 2020, after he had spent four years with the Giants and two with the Lions. He’s been a rotational rusher in Arizona, playing 40% of defensive snaps in 2020, then 28% last season. The former fifth round pick has registered 43 tackles and three sacks over that span.
Kennard re-worked his deal this past November to create some breathing room for the Cardinals down the stretch. Now he has done so once more as a way of ensuring he stays in the desert, and to lower his scheduled cap hit of just over $9M. The Cards are currently set to be essentially right at the cap ceiling.
The team’s top priority in the pass-rush department, of course, is retaining Chandler Jones. Owner Michael Bidwill has made it clear he wants the four-time Pro Bowler to sign a new deal instead of hitting free agency next week, where he would have a very lucrative market.
With Kennard in place, though, an important member of the position group will be remaining for at least the short term, regardless of what else the team is able to do this offseason.
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