The highest-profile kicker in the NFC West enjoys stimulating thought with provocative statements.
Jay Feely offered more fodder Thursday on the "Doug Gottlieb Show."
On his Arizona Cardinals acquiring Kevin Kolb: "You can't underestimate how important it was in trying to re-sign Larry Fitzgerald after this year. He is the face of the franchise and one of, if not the best receiver in the NFL -- exactly the kind of guy you want to build around. Obviously, if they didn't have a quarterback of the future in place, the likelihood of trying to re-sign Larry Fitzgerald after this year would greatly diminish."
Getting a younger quarterback with a long-range future was critical, Feely said, in part because Fitzgerald would want to envision himself building a rapport over several years. Feely expects the Cardinals to sign a slot receiver to complement a group featuring two younger receivers he mentioned by name, Max Komar and Stephen Williams.
Feely also offered thoughts on Carson Palmer's decision to stay away from the Cincinnati Bengals while demanding a trade. Feely, as a Cardinals union rep, would seem more inclined to side with Palmer under the circumstances. That was not the case.
On Palmer's demands: "People may see this as naive. My own personal view, though, is when you sign a contract, you should honor that contract. And I completely understand that the owners don't do that. Because I signed a three-year deal with Miami, went down there my first year, had the best year of my career, set the franchise record for field-goal percentage and got cut after that season when they cleaned house. ...
"Part of signing a huge deal is, you are embracing that franchise, embracing all the problems that existed. I had no problem with LeBron James as a free agent wanting to go somewhere else. ... When you sign that deal, when you accept all that money, when you accept the huge signing bonus that you get, you are accepting everything that goes along with being the face of the franchise and the quarterback of that team, the leader of that team and the face of that city."
I'm with Gottlieb in leaning more toward Palmer's side on this one simply because Palmer's frustrations with the Bengals appear justified.