1:08pm: Providing further details on the financial implications of the deal, Howard Balzer of gophnx.com tweets that Simmons already had a roster bonus of $4.2MM paid out earlier in training camp. That figure, along with the outstanding signing bonus from his rookie contract, will leave Arizona with $5.56MM in cap commitments to their now-former starter. The Cardinals’ only financial savings will be Simmons’ $1.01MM base salary; the Giants will now be on the hook for that amount.
9:38am: Isaiah Simmons‘ time in Arizona is coming to an end. The Cardinals are trading the former first-rounder to the Giants in exchange for a 2024 seventh-round pick, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The deal is now official.
Expectations were high for Simmons upon arrival in Arizona, after he established himself as a highly athletic and versatile prospect. Finding a permanent spot for the hybrid defender has proven to be difficult in the NFL, however, and the Cardinals are moving on with one year remaining on his rookie contract. His 2023 cap hit sits at just over $6.57MM, and Arizona will see minimal savings with this trade.
The 25-year-old played at linebacker during his first three seasons with the Cardinals. The team declined to pick up his fifth-year option at a rate of $12.7MM after being classified at that position. Simmons later revealed that his move to safety was of his own choosing. Player and team appeared to be headed for at least one more year together, especially to see how effective the position change would prove to be. Instead, new Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort will cut bait with a Steve Keim draftee.
The Giants’ defense played a large role in the team’s surprise run to the divisional round of the playoffs last season, and the unit will again be counted on to be effective under second-year coordinator Don Martindale. New York lost a starting safety in Julian Love during free agency, but there is also plenty of uncertainty for the team at the inside linebacker spot. Former Colt Bobby Okereke is locked into one starting spot at the second level, but the other first-team role has been in the air during the summer.
Simmons could fill in at either spot, and it will be interesting to see if he is used in a similar fashion to how he wished to be deployed in Arizona. On that point, ESPN’s Jordan Raanan tweets the Giants plan to use him at the LB spot. The Clemson alum has filled the statsheet during his career with 258 tackles, 7.5 sacks, seven forced fumbles and four interceptions. Those figure have not translated to strong PFF grades, however, and issues in run defense helped contribute to the Cardinals’ decision to decline his fifth-year option and, now, move on altogether before his contract year began.
The rebuilding Cardinals are eyeing future assets as they look to contend further down the road. Given his age and draft pedigree, it appeared Simmons could have had at least a short-term future with the team, one whose defense already lost corner Byron Murphy and defensive lineman Zach Allen in free agency. That unit will be without another starter now, while the Giants will take a flier and see if Simmons can live up to his draft stock in Year 4. If that takes place, he could prove to be a highly worthwhile acquisition.
A former 1st for a 7th? That’s a hell of a value.
Well done NYG.
Giants getting hella value this off-season.
TLDR. Pizza Hut would likely hire both of you.
Guess you do not know what amicably means, I gave you too much credit. Next time I will dumb it down for you.
Or maybe people don’t have time to read your essays. They come for football rumors, not fantasy league advertisements.
The Pizza Hut manager will be impressed if you use the word amicably during your interview.
You are not offering the readers anything from what I have seen. You must be looking for a job at this time in your life, you keep talking about it. I get to retire in 7 years and 3 months, been counting down for a long time. Best of luck to you with your ignorance and hate.
Not hard to figure out which generation you represent, especially considering your inability to read a whole paragraph. An essay is actually much longer, usually a minimum of 5 paragraphs, but you probably have never had to write one thanks to this country’s declining education system.
Please post something football related. All I have seen from you is hate, negativity, and ignorance. I hope I did not use any big words and confuse you this time around.
@devious
Alright. Now that the day is over, I’ve read your comments. I do enjoy reading your takes and occasionally Cross-eyeD’s.
My point was, and I think others agree, asking people under every post to join a random league gets annoying for the everybody very quickly.
When is your draft and what is the format?
We are using ESPN, it is a 10 person ppr, snake style draft. The date is not set in stone, since we still need 3 more managers. If you are interested we would love to have you join us.
footballrumorsffb@gmail.com
@Ha-Seong: crosseyedlemon is a regular (and a quality) poster on this site. If you don’t like his fantasy football posts, mute him. It’s a very, very simple solution to your ‘problem’. The commenters on this site are a small and loose community. I’m not sure why asking if people would be interested in a football league on a football rumors website bothers you.
To that end, you’re posting on a football rumors website. Implying that you’re any better than anyone else here (‘get a job’?) is hilariously lacking in self-awareness.
@rct
I am aware. I enjoy both Devious’ and (less often) Cross-eyed’s takes, hence my reluctance to mute them.
I regularly contribute on the MLBTR, but still follow PFTR. I never implied I’m better than anybody, so please don’t put words in my mouth. Most people don’t want to read the same comment over and over.
Sorry if I was out of line, please take care.
I like your posts, for what it counts. I don’t play fantasy, but if I did, this community seems like it’d be fun to join with. Same goes for you, lemon. I think the community here is pretty good, even if we don’t always agree and butt heads occasionally. I learn more here from it frequently.
I’ve never encountered a better forum community ANYWHERE online which is why I’ve stuck around for the past 5 years. The PFR staff deserve all the credit because they do an AMAZING job. I consider AK185 the most knowledgeable person on the site so I don’t know how he could be learning from me. It’s actually his respect and consideration of others that most impresses me though.
I actually don’t hate what Arizona is doing, but I admittedly am not a Cardinal fan. If you are going to be bad slash salary, play the young guys, and be really bad. Rebuilds don’t take as long in the NFL as other sports. Draft the correct QB like the Bengals or Jaguars and you are golden.
My only question is why pay the $4+ million roster bonus a few months ago if you are willing to sell him off for a 7th and $1+ million in savings? It just seems like not smart football decisions, which is normal for AZ. Also interesting is that they couldn’t at least get a conditional 5th from someone in the league.
I mean, it’s better than no return at all, but it’s still a stunning failure on the part of the prior regime (which had a tendency to snag top level athletic prospects at an enviable rate, only to ruin their careers by not playing them at their best positions or even at all).
I mean, this is not Lance level because the Cards didn’t give up what the 9ers did and Simmons is not a QB, but it’s pretty embarrassing. Simmons was not the third overall pick, but he was top ten. On the other hand, Lance is still on the roster, so there’s theoretical possibility of getting something out of him. Simmons is done in Arizona, at least as a rookie contract, after three years, and all the Cards get is a seventh round pick. Pretty harsh.
wow not even a 6th lol
What made Simmons special in college was his athleticism and versatility. Cards tried to make him something he wasn’t, he should’ve been playing a hybrid role like Jeremy Chinn
What is his best position would you say?
Kyler Murray next offseason
Not happy to see Isaiah Simmons join the NFC East. Used properly, Simmons could be a real menace in shallow pass protection and in shadowing/sacking the quarterback. There’s no reason for the Giants not to play Simmons as linebacker on passing (most) downs.
Wow that’s not much cost (7th round/$1M) on the Giants end to find out if he can live up to his flashes/promise and find a home. Very much worth taking the risk.
Maybe they catch lightning in a bottle.Worth a shot
I’m stunned. How bad has Isaiah Simmons been, that the Cardinals got less in return than the Eagles got for fellow 2020 bust Jalen Reagor?
I remember the Giants were considering taking him originally in the Draft.
I really wanted Giants to draft him if we didn’t have such a glaring need at LT. I think Wink will use him much better and hope it does great.