Arizona Cardinals: Most Overpaid and Underpaid Players Currently on the Roster

One major criticism that the Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill faces is that a lot of fans believe he is cheap.

Prior to 2011, Arizona had sold out 55 straight games but had one of the lowest payrolls in the National Football League. After finishing with a 5-11 record, Mr. Bidwill opened his wallet and the team handed out several big contracts.

While this partially helped the team lose the “cheap” title, it also put them in a position to have a few players labeled as overpaid, bust or both.

Many teams throughout the league, including Arizona, have a few players that are overpaid and a few that are underpaid.

Highlighted over the following six slides are the most overpaid and underpaid players on the Arizona Cardinals.  

Overpaid: Kevin Kolb

After passing on a quarterback in the 2011 draft, the Arizona Cardinals made what seemed to be a desperation trade.

They sent cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a 2012 second-round pick (Mychal Kendricks) to Philadelphia for a guy who had previously started only seven games in his career.

In addition to what was already a questionable trade, the Cardinals then signed Kolb to a five-year contract worth up to $63 million.

According to Kent Somers of Arizona Republic, the team owes Kolb $10.5 million in 2012 ($7 million roster bonus, $2 million signing bonus, $1 million base salary and $500,000 workout bonus.)

I believe that Kevin Kolb will improve now that he has had a full season and offseason to become comfortable in his role. That said, he has not done enough to warrant being paid that kind of dough.

Stewart Bradley

Former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Stewart Bradley was picked up by Arizona in free agency last season, signing with the team in late July.

At the time this seemed like a great pickup for the Cardinals. Many people in the organization believed that Bradley would come in and start next to Daryl Washington.

The 28-year-old struggled while transitioning from the 4-3 defense run by the Eagles to the 3-4 scheme employed by Arizona.

He was also at a disadvantage by only having a month to learn the complex system that is used by defensive coordinator Ray Horton.

As a result, Bradley lost what was thought to be his starting job to veteran Paris Lenon.

Despite starting in only one game and recording only 31 tackles, Bradley still made $5 million last year. He did restructure his contract for this season, but compared to what some of his teammates are making, he is overpaid at $2.5 million.

Underpaid: Daryl Washington

After losing defensive leader Karlos Dansby in free agency a couple of years ago, the Arizona Cardinals had a huge hole in their already below-average defense.

It did not take long for them to fill that hole; the Cardinals were able to steal middle linebacker Daryl Washington out of TCU in the second round of the 2010 draft.

In two seasons with Arizona, Washington has started in 25 games, recording 185 tackles, six sacks and three interceptions.

The 25-year-old has developed into a solid all-around player and his pass rushing abilities are flirting with elite status.

Washington is developing into a great young linebacker, but his base salary for 2012 is only $490,000.

Not only is he the most underpaid player in the desert, but one of the most underpaid in the league as well.

Beanie Wells

Since being drafted by the team in the first round of the 2009 draft, running back Beanie Wells has been one of the question marks for Arizona going into almost every season.

Over the past three seasons, Wells has proven that he can be a solid back, but he has not proven that he can stay healthy.

Despite missing two games with a knee injury, Wells had a great year in 2011. The 23-year-old set career highs in carries (245), yards (1,047) and touchdowns (10).

Unlike several other running backs, Wells has never complained about his contract nor has he held out.

Even though he had a great year, the Ohio native is scheduled to make only $1.1 million in 2012 ($700,000 base salary, $400,000 signing bonus), according to Spotrac.

If Wells can continue to play at the level he did last season, then he will be one of the most underpaid players in football.