Carson Palmer, Cardinals Agree to New Contract: Latest Details and Reaction

The Arizona Cardinals and quarterback Carson Palmer reportedly reached an agreement Friday on a one-year contract extension.

Adam Schefter of ESPN first reported the news. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network noted that the veteran signal-caller will receive around $24.35 million in the additional year, and the next two seasons of the deal are now guaranteed.

Albert Breer of The MMQB added the extension results in $24.5 million in new money, a vast majority of which comes from the guarantees.

On Saturday, ESPN's Ed Werder noted the extension talks were initiated by the team, to give general manager John Keim roster stability.

Palmer is coming off the best statistical season of his career. He completed 63.7 percent of his passes for over 4,600 yards while tallying 35 passing touchdowns and just 11 interceptions. His 104.6 passer rating ranked third in the NFL behind only Russell Wilson and Andy Dalton.

That said, his play faded down the stretch, and he ended up throwing four interceptions in the team's playoff loss to the Carolina Panthers. His chief target, Larry Fitzgerald, told Frank Schwab of Yahoo Sports he's convinced those struggles were due to a lingering finger injury:

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You have to understand the guy Carson is. He's not going to make excuses. We all know he couldn't grip the ball the same way. It would be the same as if a pitcher dislocated his finger, or if a basketball player. If it happened to Clayton Kershaw, he wouldn't be able to grip the ball like he needs to. If Kobe Bryant had a dislocated finger, he'd struggle to shoot dealing with that.

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Kyle Odegard of the Cardinals' official site passed along comments from Keim about the decision to extend both Palmer and Fitzgerald:

It's fair to wonder whether the Cardinals are going to get the MVP-level performance Palmer displayed for the first three quarters of last season or if his late-season struggles were a sign of things to come. That's especially true when you consider his more mediocre 88.1 career passer rating.

Yet, even with that uncertainty, Arizona didn't have much choice but to extend him. The team doesn't have any other reliable options under center. The rest of the depth chart features Drew Stanton, Matt Barkley and Jake Coker, all unproven reserves.

Trying to find another quarterback, either through free agency or the draft, who's capable of matching Palmer's numbers last season is an uphill battle, too. So sticking with the 36-year-old veteran was the best bet, at least for a couple more years.