Rodney Hudson is a no-show in Arizona. The veteran center hasn’t attended Cardinals mandatory minicamp and doesn’t have an excused absence, coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters (via Darren Urban of the team’s website). The coach wouldn’t reveal why Hudson was staying away from the team, just noting that the two sides were “working through something.”
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Hudson was acquired by the Cardinals last offseason, and he started each of his 12 games in 2021 while missing a handful of appearances thanks to rib and shoulder injuries. The 32-year-old still has two years remaining on the three-year, $30MM extension he signed Arizona following his trade from the Raiders. Of course, the offensive lineman’s absence may have nothing to do with money, and considering the Cardinals don’t really have a path to get out of his 2022 salary, it’d make more sense if the front office pursued a reworked deal next offseason. We’ll likely learn more about the situation if Hudson’s absence extends into the preseason.
With the Cardinals down a man, the organization has turned to veteran guard Justin Pugh to pick up the slack at center. Speaking to reporters, Pugh said switching positions could ultimately extend his career.
“I could see myself playing center,” Pugh said. “I’ve capped out money-wise at guard. Why not go out and see if I can play center? In this offseason, with Kyler (Murray), center is a very important position. There are a lot of centers that play older in their years, because physically it’s not as demanding. Mentally it’s much more intense, and that’s where I think I can succeed.
“We’ll try it out. We’ll see how it goes. If I don’t play real well, you’ll see me at left guard.”
Pugh also admitted that he considered hanging up his cleats following the 2021 campaign, and he made it clear that his frustration was due to the pay cut he accepted prior to the season. Ultimately, Pugh re-signed with the organization this offseason on a one-year, $5.5MM pact, and while he ultimately decided to let bygones be bygones, he still sounded a bit worked up about the money he had to sacrifice last year.
“All of a sudden, it’s ‘I’m going to cut your pay,’ and I don’t care what you do, someone cuts your pay by 33 percent, you’re not going to be happy,” Pugh said. “Then you factor in how much you love the game, how much you love being around the guys, how much you love to compete, and there is no dollar amount that can fill that gap.”
Other than Pugh, the Cardinals have limited options at center. As Urban writes, veteran Sean Harlow has some experience playing the position, but similar to Pugh, he’s more of an offensive guard. The team has also tried rookie guard Lecitus Smith at the position throughout minicamp. The team also brought in Billy Price on a free agent visit.
Terrible Pugh can’t live on $5.5 million. What a shame. The $$$ the Cardinals saved Keim probably spent it on Beer and Booze
Hudson was, at the time that the Raiders inexplicably dealt him for pennies, the best pass blocking center in the league. He always has been a strong player in the interior, ever since his days in K.C. A veteran of his caliber is seldom dealt without requesting a trade, and I am not surprised at all that he is unhappy at having had no say in his destination at his age and with his accolades (If it’s true that he requested to be released after Gruden’s arrival, then I suppose he did request it in a way, but perhaps not to Arizona?). He’s also never been a problem in the slightest for any team, and has been mostly healthy in his career.
I cannot say how much, if any at all, the Murray situation affects Hudson’s outlook, but seeing a fellow veteran in the interior take a pay cut may have factored into his decision. The Cardinals seem to have some of general disgruntled-ness underneath the surface currently, and for an age 32 player who did not make the choice to be there, Hudson may want more guarantees or be let loose to pick his own team to close out his career. That’s just, of course, speculation.
The Raiders traded Gabe Jackson to Seattle, Trent Brown back to New England, and released Richie Incognito. The Raiders 2020 starting O-Line played a total of 14 plays together during the season. These moves were made due to the feeling that draft picks needed game time experience.
All of this prompted Rodney Hudson to ask for his release. The line was getting younger, and he was not going to get that kind of contract from the Raiders. Kyler Murray is a mobile QB and the offense moves with him. Rodney understands this.
I get their motivation, but the fact remains that the Raiders either dealt or released their almost entire starting o-line in one year’s time and replaced them with lesser components. The Brown deal was a disaster due to injuries, I get that, but the Raiders went from having an overall good offensive line to an average one in the span of a year, despite having several talented players there. It made no sense the moves they chose to make, in spite of the difficulties they faced that year due to injuries. A common mistake teams make is confusing “young” with “good”. Carr isn’t old yet, but younger players do need some time to break in to the league and it seems that the Raiders willfully chose to hold back. Gruden being fired and this new roster reset only adds to what was already a decision to take more time in fielding a complete team.
I don’t know that a player has to roll over and just accept a 33% pay cut. Hardly any point in having a players union if that is the case. Don’t these kinds of situations generally go to arbitration?