The Arizona Cardinals might have Super Bowl week's radio row to thank for increased salary-cap space in 2014.
Larry Fitzgerald told Fox Sports Radio 910 last week that he would "absolutely" be willing to restructure his contract, which was projected to count more than $18 million against the cap.
The Cardinals announced Tuesday that the sides officially restructured, providing more financial flexibility for the offseason.
The contract restructure saves the Cardinals $9.4 million in cap space, NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per a source who had seen Fitzgerald's redo. This means Fitzgerald took his $12.75 million in base salary and converted a large chunk of it into a signing bonus to be pro-rated over the course of the deal. Rapoport added that Fitzgerald didn't take a pay cut.
Pointing to his "great relationship" with general manager Steve Keim, Fitzgerald suggested last week that any money freed up by his restructuring should go toward new contracts for Patrick Peterson, Karlos Dansby and Frostee Rucker.
The upshot is that Fitzgerald is now guaranteed to remain in Arizona through a 2014 season in which the Cardinals hope to jump from playoff contender to Super Bowl contender.
The "Around The League Podcast" taped our Super Bowl XLVIII recap from MetLife Stadium right after the game.