After two lost seasons due to injury, Robert Alford had an impressive bounceback campaign for the Arizona Cardinals in 2021.
The veteran cornerback played in 13 games, of which the Cardinals won 10, and the pass defense was much stronger than expected when he, Byron Murphy and Marco Wilson were on the field together.
The front office prioritized retaining many of their own free agents last offseason, and as such, most expected Alford to re-up with Arizona. Those discussions indeed began early.
Alford had a number in mind, but General Manager Steve Keim had a lower one, so no dice.
As the season got closer, Alford didn’t budge. While injuries and the tragic death of Jeff Gladney changed the complexion of the cornerback room, the offer did not improve.
Shooting Star..#TTDTAT pic.twitter.com/9WcNMxA1fp
— Robert Alford (@rockorocky) September 4, 2022
On and on it went, and no deal was ever struck, which is how a starting-caliber cover man sat out the entire 2022 season.
“It was nothing against the team, my coaches, anything like that,” Alford told me on Wednesday. “Both sides couldn’t come to a conclusion on an actual contract that was comfortable for me to go out there and play on. I was going into my 10th season in the National Football League, and I just felt like I had proven myself. When I came off my tibia injury, I came back and I had something to prove, so I was on a vet minimum deal two years ago. I felt like I proved myself that year, that I was worth more than the vet minimum.”
Alford is 34, an age that makes every decision-maker in the NFL wary. But he showed little signs of slowing down in 2021, allowing a paltry 5.2 yards per target and an opposing passer rating of 81.7.
“You can go and look back at the stats on the team, let alone in the NFC West,” Alford said. “I feel like I was up there with the top-tier cornerbacks. But what the NFL does is, once you hit 30, they consider you an old player. That’s something you’re fighting against. That’s one strike against you. I’m 34, and the league likes to throw around that you’re too old to play. But I was 33 going on 34 my last year in Arizona, and I felt like I was playing big-time ball, like guys that were 23 or 24 years old.
“You’d never know from me moving around and running that I had even sustained a tibia injury or that there was an age difference. So I felt like when it came to a contract, I felt like I proved myself that year that I played. Nothing about my game had fallen off.”
Around this time last year. They scream INJURIES but what happened to RESULTS..🤔 https://t.co/yEYQcxnhIj
— Robert Alford (@rockorocky) November 8, 2022
Alford admits that he missed playing. He was sidelined by injuries in both 2019 or 2020, but those years were different because he was rehabbing leg and pectoral injuries and was thus around the team on a daily basis.
Last season he was at home.
“It was tough to watch, knowing in the back of your head that you’ve still got years left and can still play this game,” Alford said. “On Sundays, it was a little tough to watch games, let alone watch Arizona games and seeing the guys I was just playing with last year. They’re out there playing, moving around, talking trash.”
I’m seeing a lot of teams are in need of CBs..
— Robert Alford (@rockorocky) January 8, 2023
But there were also some immense positives.
“I was able to be around my kids every day and raise them into being true adults and to treat people right,” Alford said. “For nine years I was away from them this whole six months of time, so being blessed to be around them was great. And then all of my businesses off the field, I could be more hands-on with that, so those things could reach new heights.”
The Cardinals finished No. 6 in defensive efficiency in 2021, but the defections of players like Alford, Chandler Jones and Jordan Hicks contributed to a drop to No. 24 in 2022.
The pass defense was No. 21 in the NFL this season after finishing top-five in 2021. The Cardinals went 4-13, which led to the firings of Keim and coach Kliff Kingsbury just one year after a playoff berth.
“Seeing how their season turned out, it was real tough, knowing I could have helped,” Alford said. “I know for sure I would have been able to come in and contribute.”
The Cardinals never solved their third cornerback issue in 2022.
Keim spent a seventh-round pick on Trayvon Mullen at the outset of the season, but that didn’t work out. Antonio Hamilton, Jace Whittaker and Christian Matthew all started at least three games, to varying degrees of success.
“We decided to go in a different direction.”
Kliff Kingsbury on the Arizona Cardinals decision to release DB Trayvon Mullen. Kliff mentions they like the development of rookie Christian Matthew pic.twitter.com/QbTxHxEySE
— Bo Brack (@BoBrack) December 14, 2022
Murphy is an impending free agent, leaving the position thin once again this offseason for new GM Monti Ossenfort.
Despite a year away from the game, Alford wants to play in 2023. He will be 35 in October but doesn’t think advancing age or a prominent injury history has slowed him down.
“The most gruesome injury that could have stopped me from being the player I once was would have been my leg, when I first got there (in 2019) and broke it,” Alford said. “ But I came back from that like nothing had happened. As far as the pec injury, that wouldn’t stop the player that I was before, because it’s a pec. It’s not stopping me from running, jumping or catching, and those were the key things you need to play this professional sports.
“You know how it is in the NFL, man. Once you get older, they talk about the injuries. But it depends how you take care of your body, and my body feels good. I’m still working out and doing the things I need to do. I never stopped working out. If it’s in God’s will (to play in 2023), it’s going to happen. That’s the way I’m taking it. I’m enjoying my kids and family but still working out. If there is a team out there that’s willing to give me a shot and it makes sense, then I’m willing to play. I still feel like I have years left in me.”
