With a league deadline approaching, the Cardinals decided to take it down to the wire regarding linebacker Isaiah Simmons, Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic reports.

Tuesday at 1 p.m. (Arizona time) is the last day for NFL teams to either pick up or decline the fifth-year option of their 2020 first-round draft picks. Picking up the option year keeps the player under contract through the 2024 season. Declining it makes the player become an unrestricted free agent after this year.

“We’ve got to work through that,” General Manager Monti Ossenfort said after the conclusion of the draft on Saturday. “Were going to catch our breath here a little bit … but we’ll get to that.”
 

According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, they did. The decision was made to not pick up Simmons’ fifth year. Like Haason Reddick before him, Simmons will spend this coming season playing on the final year of his rookie contract and then can sign with any team he wants in 2024. He will earn $1 million in base salary this year with an additional roster bonus of $2.4 million.

Had the Cardinals picked up his fifth-year option, Simmons’ salary would have jumped to $12.7 million in 2024.

Don't forget to follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/theredzoneorg 
 
Like us on Facebook at http://facebook.com/Theredzone.org